I finish the fourth load of laundry I've done that day. It seems like Annabel isn't over her snit about my comment yet.

"Kate!"

I sigh, squeezing my eyes shut at Annabel's shrill call. Like I can shut it out if I don't see it happening. Maybe if I just keep walking and don't look around, she'll think I didn't hear her and leave me alone. Yes, I'm not above avoiding the problem if I can.

I take a couple quick strides, but Annabel just calls my name again, louder this time, and then she grabs my arm in a surprisingly firm grip. It was wishful thinking anyway. I shrug off her hold and turn around.

"Yes?" I ask, keeping my face bland.

She narrows her eyes at me, probably trying to figure out if I'd been ignoring her on purpose. When I just stare back at her, giving her nothing, she decides not to push it.

"I need you to get stuff together for dinner. And see if you can mend this shirt for me—there's a hole along one side."

She tosses her shirt at me, but I don't even try to catch it. It hits me in the chest and falls to the ground.

"What are you doing?" she snaps, bending down to pick up the shirt. "That was just washed!"

Yeah. By me. That's it. I'm done with all of this. I've been thinking ever since my talk with Gomul, trying to figure out if I really want to do this, how I want to do this, but Annabel just helped me decide.

I'm doing this and I'm going to be direct about it. I look past Annabel to see the other women trying to look like they haven't heard every word so far.

Perfect.

"You know, I think we need to take a group vote on who wants to leave and who wants to stay," I announce, making sure to project my voice.

I look back over at Annabel and meet her eyes head on. It's a brazen move and not at all pre-planned. But I don't know if there is a plan that would avoid conflict.

Annabel is extremely sensitive to any perceived slight to her authority. Though maybe sensitive isn't exactly the right word. Maybe saying she's on a hair trigger would be more accurate.

If we were living in medieval times back on Earth, I don't think it would be much of an exaggeration to say disagreeing with her would have resulted in a swift beheading. Or maybe in being drawn and quartered. For once, I guess we're lucky we aren't on Earth. And that I really don't give a shit at that moment.

I watch in fascination as her face slowly turns beet red, her expression twisting into a tight scowl. She looks like she's going to blow.

Even as I wait for her explosive reaction, the rush of standing up to her is heady. Adrenaline courses through my veins, making me feel truly alive for the first time in too long. I'm so pumped that I don't just leave it at that one comment, like I maybe should. If she's going to be mad anyway, might as well let everything out.

I don't even wait for her response. I decide to keep going.

"You know Annabel, I am so sick of your shit." I hear more than one gasp from the peanut gallery watching. "I'm tired of your pettiness, your lack of ability to listen to anyone else's ideas, and your constant insults. Not only are you grating on the nerves, I don't think you're a good leader. All you're doing is taking the path of least resistance and trying to bully all of us into following along even if it's not the right path." I take a step towards her, using my extra couple inches of height to look down on her as she sputters, so enraged she can't even get a word out. "Well, you know what? I'm done. Completely, permanently done. So. Here's my notice to you—I'm leaving tomorrow." I turn back to all the women watching. "And anyone who wants to come with me is welcome."

There. It's all out there now.

Silence.

I almost expect crickets to start chirping. My stomach starts to tighten with anxiety. I have a moment where I wonder if I'm going to be exiting this place alone. You know, fine. It that's the way it has to be—

"I'm in," cuts in a sure, confident voice. Oh, thank God. It's Fallon. Not much of a surprise, considering that she barely tolerates Annabel at the best of times. She'd been training to serve on the navigation deck of the ship before we crashed, losing her father in the process. Perhaps that contributes to the simmering anger just under the surface, though from what I saw on the ship, he was more of the harsh type.

"Me too." Nora's quiet voice is a bit more surprising. Though if I think about the way Annabel constantly throws insults at her...maybe I shouldn't be so shocked.

"Count me in," Addison adds, standing to join the others. She's more of the brainy, tech-oriented type. She's definitely out of her element here on Tajss. But aren't we all?

"Me as well," Ashlee pipes up, bouncing up with her usual energy. She's a people pleaser who doesn't usually offer much resistance as long as someone else is leading. She has an unflagging positive attitude which is truly impressive considering our circumstances.

"Hope there's room for another," Lanie adds, her tone serious. I nod at her. She's a girly girl and a veterinary expert. She hasn't exactly had a whole lot to study or care for while we've been here, what with all the animals we've encountered so far intent on killing us if they can.

The next one is a real shocker, one that lets me know just how fed up people actually are. Nina takes a deep breath and steps forward.

"I'd like to go as well." I blink at her. Annabel's very own PR consultant? Even she doesn't want to stay anymore?

I stare at the assembled group, all willing to join me in leaving these tunnels and finding out what's out there. I have a team. An actual team! That spark of courage in me grows.

I can do this. We can do this.

Annabel finally recovers enough to voice her rage. Yay.

"So all of you are going to run out there to die?" she scoffs. "And you think she's going to be able to help you survive?"

"We're all going to help each other survive," I counter.

She shakes her head in disgust.

"I'm leading here," she says fiercely, poking her finger into my chest. I barely resist the urge to slap it away. "And I'm not letting you do this."

"Are we prisoners here then?" Fallon demands, drawing Annabel's attention. "Because that's not what I signed up for."

The others murmur their agreement. She has her there. I can see Annabel mentally back tracking, scrambling for more ways to stop us.

"How are you going to eat?" she demands. "How are you going to find water to drink? How are you going to defend yourself against even one of those monsters out there?"

They are valid points. But not reasons to avoid trying.

"We'll figure it out," I respond.

I don't have to explain myself to her. Those days are over. Her jaw clenches so hard I almost expect to hear her teeth cracking at the pressure.

"Fine. Go." She steps back. "You'll be crawling back here soon enough, begging for my forgiveness," she sneers. "Just remember—if you leave, I might not let you back in."

Does she really think threats are going to stop us at this point?

It's my turn to shake my head in disgust.

"We're heading out first thing tomorrow," I inform her. "Enjoy playing house and leeching from Gomul. You'd be dead without him. It's about time you start respecting that fact instead of treating him like another underling."

By that point, I have no desire to argue with her any further even though she's throwing out more arguments, more insults.

Now that I've made my stand, I have to put my money where my mouth is, which means we need transportation. I really only have one viable option. And after that scene, I'm going to have to make it work.

When the main ship crashed, we were in one of the research pods that were out scouting ahead. We lasted a bit longer than the ship, but eventually we were also forced to lower ourselves into Tajss’ atmosphere.

The pod crashed into the sand hard enough that it split in two.

Luckily, the pod also included a land rover I'd designed and built on the main ship in my earlier engineering days. And wonder of all wonders, it survived the landing mostly intact. After we crashed and managed to fix it, we were able to use it to travel.

Unfortunately, not before the lizard-like beasts that attacked us when we crashed managed to kill a good amount of our group, increasing the casualty count. The men who had survived the impact were all killed when they tried to fight off those animals.

Giant lizards with humping mounds across their back and skin lined with sharp spikes weren't anything we were prepared for, especially not after the shock of the crash. And those things were vicious in their attack.

If Gomul hadn't come out of hiding to help us, we would've all died right then. There's no question. We all owe our lives to him.

I feel a pang in my heart. I'm going to miss Gomul. But it's well past time to move on. I know there must be more of our people out there.

And I honestly don't know how much longer we're going to survive down here underground anyway. All of us are pale, weak, the climate here not one conducive to human health. I don't want to waste away down here. And I can’t sit here biting my tongue forever, submitting to the rule of a clear narcissist for the rest of my days on this hunk of rock.

Yeah. It's time to go.

I reach the rover without a problem, where it's parked near the entrance to the tunnels. It needs repairs before we can take it out, so I get to work fixing, checking under the hood, and also checking the wiring underneath along with the actual body of the thing.

While I'm halfway under the vehicle, muttering to myself as I patch up holes torn into the undercarriage, I hear footsteps approach.

"Are we leaving in the morning?" I hear Fallon ask.

"Yes," I respond after a pause. How odd that I'm actually in charge. "I should have this thing ready to go by then. Tell the others to be ready."

"Got it."

I hear the murmur of her voice and others as the footsteps move away again.

All right then. I have the night to make all the fixes I need to. Time to get moving. As with all repairs, it takes me longer than I expected. A bunch of bruises, a cut finger, and a sleepless night later, I finally have it ready to go.

I probably have a couple of hours left for resting before we head out. I should sleep. But before I do that, I need to pay Gomul a visit. I can't leave without seeing him one more time.

He's awake. He doesn't look all that surprised to see me when I arrive in his tunnel.

"I heard you're leaving," he says, watching me.

"What you said...it struck a chord in me," I explain.

It's as simple and complex as that.

He smiles at me.

"I am glad," he says simply. "Though I am sad to see you leave, I think it is the right thing for you to do."

I feel something else ease inside me. Even that little snippet of support makes me feel better about my decision.

"I am glad you came to see me, so I do not have to find you. I have drawn a rough map for you that will take you near food plants," he explains, picking up a rolled-up piece of hide nearby. After unrolling it, he points out what all the symbols mean. "You cannot fell any of the beasts here, so you will have to rely on the growing food. I have also marked water sources you can use on your journey." He looks up at me. "I know with these resources, you will be successful in your endeavor."

"Thank you, Gomul," I murmur, shaking my head, completely overwhelmed at the show of support and the help. The map will be more than helpful out there in the harsh desert—it could even save our lives.

He inclines his head.

"I have also packed some food for you and your group," he adds, gesturing to the laden bags to the side that I hadn't paid much attention to.

"Gomul! That's your food!" I exclaim, shaking my head. "We've already taken enough—"

"Nonsense," he interrupts. "I have enough. And you will need the resources." His eyes are kind as he leans towards me. "You are a leader now. You must think of those in your care as well." He looks over at the food. "You will need to ration it carefully. If you do, you should be able to survive on that alone for perhaps three weeks."

I nod, considering his words before I refuse again. He's right. I have a group to take care of now. I cannot deny the help.

"Thank you," I murmur again, humbled. "You don't know how much this means to me."

"You will need to be firm," he warns. "They are your wards first now—friends second."

He has to repeat that last sentence for me, explain it until I understand he means those in my charge. I've learned his language pretty well, but there are still words I don't know. Once I understand the sentiment, the thought is sobering. He's right. I'm going to have to shift mental gears to lead.

I sit with Gomul a little longer as I contemplate that. I don't know when I will see him again, after all. This time is precious. When I finally leave to take a nap, I give him a tight hug, one he returns gingerly.

"Safe journey," he murmurs.

I nod, blinking back tears. And resolve to visit him again, if at all possible. The nap I manage to take recharges me enough to continue forward when combined with the nerves and adrenaline that are also riding me.

When I'm up off the pallet again, I load up the rover with the food Gomul was nice enough to provide and tuck the map securely in the driver's side.

Then I give the rover one more go-over, not wanting to find out I missed something after we're already out of here.

When I get under the thing, I'm glad I did. There’s a problem with the wiring that I hadn’t noticed the night bef—

I take a closer look. My lips tighten as anger surges through me. Someone deliberately opened the protective casing for some of the electrical wiring and cut the wires on the surface. It's a hatchet job.

I take a deep breath to calm myself.

I don't need three guesses to have a pretty good idea who it was. Is this really what it's come to? Is she this power hungry, this petty that she would sabotage our only vehicle just to keep us here? I shake my head as I get to work repairing the wires. We were lucky, in a way. Annabel doesn't know anything about tech or engineering or she could have done something that would have taken a lot longer to fix. Or something that would have been irreparable under these conditions. As it is, this is really just an inconvenience.

It takes me about forty minutes to undo the damage and close the protective casing back up. By the time I'm done and sliding out from under the vehicle again, my group is arranged around the rover.

Along with a bunch of the others, Annabel in the lead.

"Is it ready to go?" Addison asks, glancing at the rover with a critical eye.

I nod, wiping my hands as I look at Annabel.

"Sure is," I say, my tone sardonic as I raise a brow at her.

Her jaw clenches.

"If you leave, don't come back," she snarls.

With that parting shot, she spins around and shoves her way through the crowd to stalk away.

Those staying look at each other uneasily. Good luck to them. I can only hope Annabel will calm down and realize she's hurting the people she should be taking care of. And that she might lose more of them if she doesn't change something.

"Come on," I say quietly. "Let's head out."

Everyone moves forward to store their bags in the back, and then we climb in.

The rover starts at the first touch and I maneuver it out. We've been mostly underground for some time now in those tunnels. In fact, it's been...

It's been years.

The realization is like a kick to the stomach. We should have left the tunnels ages ago. I should've seen that we needed to leave well before this. I shouldn't have needed Gomul's kick in the pants.

I shake my head at myself. It doesn't matter. We're leaving now. There's no point in looking to the past.

I hear hisses from inside the rover as we come out into the full, burning light of the two suns. I drive slowly, narrowing my eyes as I try to adjust to the light after the dimness of the tunnels.

"Man, that's ridiculously bright," Lanie comments. "I feel like a mole rat finally leaving its hole."

Mutters of agreement follow that statement. She isn't far off from the truth. We've been down there, out of the sunlight, for way too long.

Without a specific destination in mind, I pull out the map. Might as well follow the planned route Gomul formed for us.

"Here goes nothing," I say under my breath.

I drive forward. And keep driving. We only stop to go to the bathroom and eat. There isn't somewhere we have to be at a certain time, but the more ground we cover the better if we're trying to explore and see what's out here.

The day passes with wave after wave of the red sandy dunes this planet is covered in. The suns never cease their glaring shine and it feels like any direction we go in looks basically the same. Boredom settles in quite quickly, prompting a couple of the girls to ask if they can snack on the food we have.

"Can we have a little more of the dried meat?" Ashlee asks.

Nora voices her agreement.

With Gomul's voice still clear in my mind, I refuse.

"We have to be really careful with our supplies," I explain. "If we don't overindulge, they should last us a few weeks."

"I thought Gomul told you where we could find food?" Nina asks.

"He did," I confirm. "But we don't know what we're going to find when we get to those places. I don't know how long it's been since he's actually visited them all."

Or what danger could be lurking there when we arrive, though I don't mention that last worry. They finally subside, realizing I'm not going to give in here. Though they bring up the issue again. Multiple times. I know none of us are really full, but we've had enough food to last us, considering we're not walking but simply driving. Some of them want more just for comfort, so I hold strong. I need to make sure we have enough food to last us. That's my priority.

As more time passes, we alternate drivers so we can keep moving even during the night. Seeing the predators we already have, staying still for a prolonged period of time doesn't seem like a great idea.

So that's how we continue for the next couple of days. We haven't found anything interesting by that point, but I'm glad that at the very least, we're out of those tunnels and in the open. I feel like I can finally breathe again. But the smooth sailing doesn't last for long.

"We have company," Fallon calls out urgently from the back on our third day out.

I glance in the rear-view mirror and at the screen that shows the camera view behind us. I frown.

"I don't see..."

There’s a flicker of movement over one of the distant dunes.

"It looks like the same things that attacked us before," Lanie chimes in, her tone tight. "Maybe three of them?"

Shit. That is not good.

"Let's see how much juice we can get out of this thing," I mutter, pushing down on the accelerator.

The rover lurches forward. I push hard, as fast as I can safely drive. When we stop, it's only to take care of our needs. Then it's back in the rover to eat as we speed away again.

"They're gaining," Lanie informs me. "At least, one is. That's the only one I can still see."

When I look back this time, I see the thing crest the dune right behind the one we just traversed. That same giant lizard-like thing, with thick skin and a humped back, deadly spikes growing out of it at various spots. Its teeth are razor sharp. I know that from the attack when we first landed. The men hadn't stood a chance against them.

I take a deep breath. That isn't going to be us. I refuse to let it be.

But Lanie's right. It's going to be upon us soon. We have to change strategies here. I stare at it, judging its size. If I wait for it to catch up to us, it could do a lot of damage to the rover. Without the rover, we're easy prey out here. I glance around, not seeing any convenient cover anywhere nearby. Just like I haven't for the last hundred miles.

We have only one option here really. I slow the car down.

"What are you doing?" Fallon asks sharply. "We need to get farther away, not closer."

"We're not going to be able to outrun it," I explain, pointing out the obvious. "We have to try something else."

"So we're just going to let it catch us?" Addison asks, her voice rising with fear. "And what? Tell it to stop?"

"No," I say calmly, jamming the gear into reverse. "We're going to take it out before it can take us out."

"Oh my God," Nora mutters.

"It's a good a plan as any," Fallon muses.

"Glad you approve." I look back at everyone. "Brace yourselves, guys."

Everyone grabs hold of what they can, their seat belts already fastened.

"Ready?"

The nods I receive are varied, none of them completely sure. Good enough.

I look back. The thing is just at the top of the dune directly behind us. I stopped the rover at the top of the one we're on. Perfect.

I take a deep breath.

And gun it.

We shoot backwards, a couple of the others let out screams. The acceleration is amplified by the downhill path we're taking. We're going fast. Really fast.

"Come on," I mutter as I see the thing still moving towards us.

We need to hit it with a high enough speed that we kill it. And I'm only going to have one chance at this. If I don't get it the first time, I won’t have the chance to set up a second shot as good as this one.

The thing starts to move to the side as we near, but it isn't quite fast enough.

We're braced for it, but the impact is still jarring.

More shrieks come from the back as we fall into a spin, metal squealing and sand flying as the world rotates around us. I’m holding on so tightly I can't feel my hands. We finally come to a stop some yards away.

Am I still in one piece?

I swallow, slowly prying my fingers off the bar on the door. I feel like my heart might have stopped for a second there. I clear my throat.

"Is...is everyone all right?" I ask, my voice hoarse. Had I been screaming too?

"Yeah."

"Uh huh."

"I think so?"

Everyone confirms they are indeed alive and in one piece.

"What about the guster?" I ask next, trying to orient myself.

Spinning a few times at high speed is...disorienting.

"Can't see it," Fallon mutters.

The others confirm.

"All right."

The best thing to do is drive over there and check. I try to turn the rover on. I try again.

"Is something wrong?" Addison asks.

I sigh, leaning my head on the steering wheel.

"I think the speed we needed blew a fuse."

I hit my head against the wheel. This is not what we need. But I can't just sit and wallow.

First order of business—check on the guster.

"I'll be right back."

"Wait—"

"Where are you going?"

I step out of the car and shield my eyes to look over the sand. The path the car took is clear—the tires leaving a circular track pattern. Well, several circles. I don't hear anything. I take a deep breath and let it out. Here goes nothing. I feel like that's fast becoming my motto.

I trudge across the dune, following the tracks. The sooner we know, the better. If it's about to attack us, I'll be gone first. Not great. But at least they'll have some warning.

I hear another door open behind me.

"Stay inside while I check," I call back. No use in all of us taking this risk.

Edging to the left, I stop abruptly. The thing is in view now, and it isn't moving. Upon closer examination, it looks like I was successful in bashing its head right in. It's leaking...

I swallow the bile that wants to come up.

I turn back to the car but stop when I see the others already walking towards me.

"I told you to wait in the car," I point out.

"We couldn't leave you to fend for yourself," Fallon points out.

"And I could probably tell better if it's actually dead..." Lanie trails off as she catches sight of the body. "Yep. That's dead all right."

I snort.

"Very helpful." I shake my head. "Okay, we shouldn't let all this meat go to waste. We need to break it down and store it for later. While you take care of that, I'm going to go check on the rover, see if I can fix it."

"Aye aye, Captain," Fallon says cheekily, throwing me a salute.

"I'll come with you," Addison pipes up. "In case you need another opinion."

I nod. Any help would be appreciated, and Addison knows her away around tech, if not this rover in particular. Some basics could overlap.

Leaving the rest to start in on the guster, we head back to the rover. The actual body of the vehicle is only slightly dented from the impact, and I used the back deliberately to protect the engine.

I'm pretty sure it was the speed we used that killed it. Wow. We killed a guster on our own. And now we have meat too. If the rover was still working, I would have called this whole thing a definite win.

After sinking down to the hot sand, I ignore the heat and shimmy underneath the vehicle. I open the protective casing and carefully check everything. It isn't a fuse. It's likely another component, a vital one. I'll have to check under the hood to make sure, but it can only be a couple things. Shimmying out, I walk to the front to open the hood.

It doesn't take long to find the problem. I touch the singed area. I'm going to have to weld it to fix it. How, I don't know quite yet.

"Want to give me a second opinion, Addison?" I ask quietly.

She shakes her head.

"Welding," she confirms.

I sigh.

"Yeah."

Well, we've diagnosed the problem. I just don't know how to work around this. We have to figure it out. We can't just stay here immobile. We're like sitting ducks.

"Kate! Kate!"

I almost hit my head on the hood as I hear the others shouting my name. Cursing, I close the hood just in time for Ashlee to run over.

"What? What is it?"

She tries to catch her breath as she points ahead.

"There. There's another Zmaj heading this way," she gasps.

What? A Zmaj? My heart beat picks up again as I follow her finger. Maybe she's wrong...

I squint into the distance. I feel my back tighten.

There. Wings, tail... She's right.

"What do we do?" she asks anxiously.

I shake my head. I have no idea what to expect. Gomul was amazing and continues to be great. But he also warned us, said we were fortunate we didn't run into some others. He never gave specifics on who to avoid and this is the first time I really regret that.

"Come on," I urge Addison and Ashlee. "Let's join the rest."

I'll feel safer with all of us together, though I don't know if that's actually true. None of us can fight someone like Gomul and win.

We make it to the rest of our group just as the new Zmaj lands, traveling much faster than we can. He's built for this crazy planet.

When he lands, I have to tilt my head back to meet his eyes. He's tall. Maybe even taller than Gomul. Definitely younger. With broad shoulders and a muscular build, he's even more imposing. And eye-catching. His scales are an almost peacock blue-green, glowing brightly in the sunlight. And the bright blue green eyes set in his handsome face match.

My eyes lock on his as I force myself to walk towards him. He's...entrancing. I feel that undeniable sizzle of chemistry, my skin a little too tight, a little too sensitive. But that doesn't matter.

I will myself past the obvious fact that I'm attracted to this large, bipedal dragon. But I can't push past something even more odd. I feel like...

Like I can trust him. How absolutely ridiculous is that? Almost as ridiculous as being attracted to a dragon.

He watches intently as I stop a few feet away and then introduces himself.

"I am Errol."

Errol.

"Pleasure to make your acquaintance, Errol," I return, tasting the name. "I'm Kate."

It isn't nearly as exotic and pretty. How appropriate.