"Don't take anything that isn't essential," I warn. "Walking out here in the desert is no joke even without a pack. And if all goes well, we'll come back to get the rover in any case."

I plan to anyway. That rover is like my baby. I built it from the ground up on the generational ship and I'm proud of it. The workmanship speaks for itself. Even after the crash, the intentionally low-tech design has held up. The fuel converter uses solar receivers and trash to power the vehicle and the heavy-duty materials used to make it are tough enough to, say, kill a guster and survive. Mostly. It really is the best option for the hard terrain here on Tajss. A happy accident. We could use more of those.

I quickly help divide up the food and water we can carry.

"Ready?" I ask, after I see everyone has rolled up their belongings.

I get nods all around. All right, good to go.

I look over at Errol. It's difficult to not stare at him the whole time, honestly, but I manage not to embarrass myself. At least, not yet.

"We're good to go," I tell him, adjusting my own pack.

He nods. "This way."

Errol is obviously built for this place, his wings giving him some lift, so he doesn't sink into the sand. We're not nearly as graceful as we trudge along behind him, but we manage. At least we make forward progress, but I do immediately miss the rover. I want to sigh from the bottom of my lungs, but I’m learning to control stuff like that because my emotions affect the other women. In my head, I curse the guster for wrecking my rover. Then again, if we hadn't used the rover on the guster, we might not even be alive to complain about this trek now. And I wouldn’t have met Errol.

He slows, walking along beside me for a bit, but then he moves ahead again.

"I will scout ahead to look for any possible trouble," he says and gives me a smile that makes my heart speed up.

The scouting will be much appreciated by our whole group. I feel a lot safer with someone who knows Tajss with us.

So that's how we travel. He mostly stays in the lead, getting a good look at the area ahead of us. Occasionally, I catch up with him. Even more rarely, I actually pass him by, enjoying the surprise on his face when I do. I'm competitive by nature though, and the playful competition helps keep me motivated under the searing sun. But I still maintain my distance from him for the most part. I'm still not sure about him—the vague gut feeling that tells me I can trust him isn't enough to throw all caution to the wind. Especially when I'm not just responsible for myself.

I glance back at the group from time to time, to make sure everyone is accounted for. We're all exhausted pretty early on. The heat, the sun, the sinking sand—it's a lot. And we didn't start our journey in what I’d call top physical condition. I didn't realize exactly how weak we'd all gotten until this moment. Though it isn't surprising that we haven't exactly been thriving on this inhospitable alien planet. We're lucky we're even alive at all. We keep walking at that relatively slow pace until night starts to fall.

"We will break for food and rest here," Errol says, slowing to walk beside me. He points at a hollowed-out ridge that offers some protection.

I nod. Sounds like a good plan. And I'm definitely ready to sit. I pass the information down to the rest of the group, and we all head over to the space Errol pointed out. I groan along with the others as we set down our belongings and sit down. My legs and back are aching with the unaccustomed exercise.

"You should have some water," Errol murmurs, lowering himself down to sit next to me. "Food will also help. Your people are not adapted to the desert."

I chuckle at that understatement.

"Yes," I agree, taking his advice and having a sip of water. "This is not our natural...place."

I don't know how to say environment, but Errol seems to catch the drift of what I'm trying to say.

"It is a hard place, Tajss," he agrees. He looks out over the expanse of desert. "But it is home."

I nod, pulling out my portion of the rations without a verbal response. I don't really want to fall into a conversation with him. In fact, I've been trying my best to avoid it this whole time. This draw I feel for him, this desire to trust him... It leaves me off-kilter. Better to keep him at a bit of a distance until I get a handle on it.

Luckily, he seems to sense my desire for distance just fine. Even better, he doesn't push it, simply settling down to eat next to me in companionable silence. How refreshing. I appreciate his respect for my wishes, for my boundaries. Not everyone is so accommodating.

Forcing myself to look away, I focus on my water and food. I am pretty damned ravenous, so it actually isn't as difficult as it might have been. I probably don't look all that attractive while I scarf down the food and guzzle my water, but there you go. The fact that I even consider how I look at that moment is a glaring indicator that I want Errol to like how I look. I shake my head at myself. That's a little embarrassing. Especially when I know I look a mess from the day of traveling on foot.

When I'm done downing the food so inelegantly, I regret it for a different reason. Now I have no excuse not to talk. The silence turns a little odd as we sit there. Great.

"So...uh...do you live in the city?" I ask.

Errol shakes his head, also having finished eating. Though he was a lot more polite about it than I was.

"No, I live with my Tribe, though we are allies. In fact, I was just traveling back home from the city when I encountered your group."

"Oh." I consider that. "I'm sorry for messing up your plans." He frowns at me. “Uh...interrupting...your plans?" I try.

My grasp on the language is a lot better than it used to be, but we only really had Gomul to talk to.

"Ah." His face clears. "It is really no trouble—"

A feminine scream rips through the night air, shrill and frightened.

Errol and I both jump up.

"Ashlee went to use the bathroom," Lanie says urgently, her eyes wide.

"Which way?" I demand.

She points a shaky finger.

Errol takes off instantly, going much faster than I can. I scramble after him, my heart beating fast. I've seen some of the creatures here. What if we don't get there quickly enough?

Errol flares his wings and leaps over the dune at the top of the ridge, his powerful body making it look easy. I shove myself over much more slowly, probably looking like an idiot, but I'm more concerned with speed than how I look.

Especially when Ashlee screams again.

When I get to the top and have my first look at the situation, my heart freezes in my chest. Ashlee is running towards us, and the thing behind her is gaining. What the hell is that?!

It's massive and vaguely gorilla-like in appearance, with bulging arms and huge fists that it uses to help propel itself forward. Thick fur flies back as it runs forward, the long strands covering its shoulders and the top half of its arms. I can't be sure in the dimmer light, but the bare skin of its forearms looks blue. Can that be right?

Its dark eyes are focused on Ashlee, and even bent over like it is, it's about as tall as she is. It's clearly much stronger than any of us. It's also clear just how lucky we are that Errol is here right now.

He jumps from the top of the dune, brandishing his lochaber, the same kind of long-handled, bladed weapon Gomul uses. His wings flare out, his tail whipping behind him as he swings the blade to the side, soaring directly over Ashlee. With a smooth, hard rotation, he slashes at the thing's face with the blade. The beast stumbles back, shrieking and covering its face.

Errol is magnificent. He takes control of the situation. His movements are smooth, almost cat-like in their speed and decisiveness. He strikes at the thing again, avoiding a swing of those powerful fists, cutting another slash into the creature's muscled chest. He strikes boldly, with precision and force that I can tell surprise the beast. It was expecting to take only Ashlee. Easy prey.

Ashlee reaches me then, her breathing harsh. I grab her, trying to calm her as she also turns to watch.

Errol is mesmerizing as he dodges and weaves around the creature, deliberately keeping its attention away from us. He reminds me of the old nineteen-eighties sword and sorcery heroes. Wings and muscles rippling, eyes filled with a determined, fierce fury that would strike fear in anything sentient. Anything sentient that had an ounce of intelligence that is.

However, the beast he's fighting is literally foaming at the mouth, something I didn't realize earlier. It looks like it’s out of control, not thinking completely clearly. Otherwise, it would have retreated already, clearly outclassed by Errol. But that doesn't mean it isn't dangerous.

As Errol extends his arm, spinning his lochaber back around, the creature manages to slash at his arm with its claws right before the blade slices halfway through its thick neck.

I cry out in dismay, taking a step towards the fight, though I don't know what I think I can do to help. It moved more quickly than a thing of that girth looked like it could. But that last blow Errol deals is the fatal one. The creature continues moving forward, but it is already dead on its feet. Errol shifts to the side and it falls forward to the ground, its large body sprawling over the sand, dark blood soaking in a growing pool around the neck wound.

"Wow."

I glance over at the word. The rest of our group is arranged along the crest of the dune around us, all staring at the dead animal. I don't even know when they arrived, I was so focused on the action.

Errol rises from his crouch, stepping away from the thing, his chest rising and falling quickly with harsh breaths. He looks up at us. I almost take a step back.

"I believe we should move on to the closest water source," he says, his voice harsh, his eyes still holding the intensity of the fight. "Majmun are pack animals. I do not know why this one is alone in the desert, away from the trees they usually dwell in. Perhaps it is simply crazed. Perhaps it is simply like the other animals that were recently disturbed by the meteorite showers. But I do not want to run into the rest of his pack if it is nearby."

I nod immediately. Sound logic. I turn to the group.

"Pack up. Let's get the hell out of here."

No one argues with that. We hustle hard and we're packed up and ready to go within five minutes.

Errol leads us again, directly to a small oasis about a half hour away. At least the suns are close to setting now, so the journey doesn't feel as difficult. Probably the shock of adrenaline we just had also helps.

"Oh, thank God. Water."

"Man, I could really use a bath."

"Yeah, you really could."

"Shut up!"

I smile at the teasing back and forth as spirits lift again.

The sight of water is really welcome after the day we've had. It occurs to me that I have never seen a natural body of water in my entire life. The spring, sparkling with the last of the sunset light, and the trees, whose leaves flutter in a light breeze, are the most beautiful things I’ve seen in years. I feel tears gather in my eyes. The other women are standing nearby. Are they feeling the same?

Errol does a quick scout of the spring and the trees around it before giving us the go ahead, his eyes sharp and watchful. He's been on guard this whole time, but the encounter with the creature has him appearing even sharper. Just like the rest of us. Nothing like an attack to keep you on your toes.

The other girls rush forward, stripping down to their underwear and jumping into the water with cries of delight. I turn to Errol, who's eyes are constantly scanning around us, looking for threats.

"Come on, Errol," I murmur, taking his hand in mine. He starts at the touch, his eyes shifting to me. "Let's get you cleaned up too. That thing got you good."

"Majmun," he says, allowing me to guide him to the water.

"Maj-moon?" I repeat, turning his arm to get a better look at the gouges. They're bleeding. At the very least they need to be cleaned.

"Yes. Majmun," he says, watching as I rip off the bottom of my shirt. "What are you doing?"

"Taking care of your wound," I explain, crouching down to dip my shirt in the water. It's already cooling a bit with the suns setting.

When I rise back up, he stays still, watching as I carefully clean his arm. I know it must hurt, but he doesn't move, his eyes focused unflinchingly on my face. Like he might let me do anything to him. The thought sends a thrill through me that I quickly suppress.

I look away to wring out the shirt, but then meet his eyes again. His gaze is...electrifying. I swallow as I smooth the cloth over his skin. It's like the fight tore away a piece of that civilized exterior. Leaving someone more...naked. More primal.

My heartbeat increases for a different reason now. Whatever this is, between us? It's not something I can ignore. Not something I can deny. Do I even want to try?