CHAPTER TWENTY

MELISSA

The ship blasted away, and Mel pressed herself to the wall of the closest ship, shielding her face from the swirling air it kicked up. She watched as it vanished into the haze above, resisting the sinking feeling in her heart.

If that ship worked, others should too.

The thought was comforting, but if Dogan or his goons caught her, she wouldn’t get a chance to find out.

Moments after Jahle had left her, she had followed. What else could she do? He couldn’t take on all the guards by himself. She could never leave the Water People’s children to their fate. Olex had wasted precious time and priceless equipment to help Mel. The least she could do was ensure the children were safe.

She followed the echoing of Dogan’s voice, trying to make it to the clearing without being spotted. She tallied her resources. Earlier he had sent his guards to find her, but it sounded like both Dogan and Jahle believed she had left Geran.

Okay, element of surprise. Check.

The sonar evaluator thunked against the hull of a ship. Mel winced.

Okay, this piece of crap. Check.

Too bad I don’t have a real gun.

She pushed away the negativity. No matter what she did or didn’t have, she still had her brain. She still had her wits. She still knew how to think.

Think, Mel, think.

The heat drained her energy. After the coolness of the ship’s interior it seemed to have doubled in strength. Her body shook, and she knew that with her fever, she wouldn’t be able to sustain any long-term effort. But she had to keep moving. She had to keep thinking.

She rounded a corner, and froze as she came face to face with a handful of Ennoi guards. Her heart thundering, she stared at them, and they returned the favor, gaping at her. One clutched his weapon tighter, but his companion laid her hand on his shoulder. She leaned in and whispered in his ear, causing him to lower his gun. He licked his lips nervously, then scurried away.

Mel exhaled as the female Ennoi guard dipped her head in acknowledgment toward her. “We mean you no harm.” She kept her voice low.

Mel nodded back. “I just want to help the kids,” she whispered.

The woman’s face tightened. “You should leave this place. Now.”

It was good advice. “I can’t. Not yet.”

For a moment, the Ennoi studied her. “I understand,” she said finally. “Understand that we have already done too much. We cannot aid you further.” The guard left without looking back, hurrying to rejoin her companions.

Guess Dogan doesn’t inspire loyalty.

Mel kept moving, staying low to the ground, working her way to the center of the space in a roundabout route to keep herself hidden behind the bulk of the ships. Each was large as a bungalow, but the wide gaps at the bottom meant she would be easily spotted if any enemies were at eye level.

A deep roar ripped through the spaceport. It was a sound of pure rage. Even with the open air, it seemed to echo. The sound was followed by a second roar, this one pitched higher.

What the heck is that? Mel shivered. And why are there two of them?

A crash made her jump, and Mel raced around the corner in time to see a giant beast slam into a nearby ship. She blinked in surprise. The creature was massive, muscled and mean. Spikes ran from the tip of its snout, down its long neck, across its broad back and to the tip of its tail. Heavy scales covered its body in an impenetrable armor. Scales swirled in a familiar cinnamon and tan color scheme.

Jahle? But- No. It… It can’t be.

Yet she knew it was. She knew it with a certainty that burned deep inside her. She didn’t know how, she didn’t know why, but she knew it was him. When the creature – Jahle – rolled to his feet and turned his ruby eyes toward the side, Mel had confirmation.

It is him!

A second creature, this one even more muscled and squat, came charging out from between two ships. It bore the burnt umber and red stripes of Dogan. Dogan plowed into Jahle, his teeth flashing. Jahle snapped back, raking his claws across his brother’s chest. Mel hissed. Dogan was aiming for killing blows, but she could tell Jahle was holding back.

“Fight, you dumbass,” she muttered, knowing he would never hear her over the roars and grunts of the fighters.

Worry about your dragon boyfriend later. Find the kids.

Grateful for the distraction, she darted into the clearing between the ships. The two titans were locked in a wrestling match and wouldn’t notice her. She spotted the children huddling under a ship. The oldest looked up at her approach. He pushed the younger ones behind him.

“You’re Zayef and Ketug’s kid, right?” she asked, crouching down.

The boy nodded. “Eien.”

“Where are your parents? Olex?”

Eien’s lips thinned, but he shook his head. “They did not make it.”

Mel sat back. “I-I’m sorry. They were good people.”

The boy nodded and while his eyes grew watery, the suspicion on his face did not abate.

Jahle slammed into a ship nearby, making the littlest Ennoi shriek. Mel reached out her hand. “Come on. We have to get out of here.”

For a second, Eien hesitated. “Where will we go?”

The simplicity of the question broke Mel’s heart. “We’ll find somewhere. Somewhere safe.” When Dogan and Jahle reengaged on their left, she gestured under the ship. “Let’s go that way.”

Eien hugged the Ennoi children and then sent them under one by one. Mel followed last.

“What about the guards?” Eien asked. “They were told to kill us if we tried to escape.”

That bastard Dogan deserves a sharp kick to the balls.

“They won’t bother us,” she said. “We need to find a functioning ship.”

She led the children away from the fight, heading toward the wall where she and Jahle had first emerged. The door wouldn’t open on the first ship they tried, but the second one opened with a groan. Mel hurried the children on board, but left the door open.

In the cockpit, she tried to remember what Jahle had done. But the levers, dials and buttons on the console seemed overwhelming suddenly. Her hands hovered over the controls in indecision. “Oh, man, I can’t even handle the copier at work. How the heck does this thing work?”

Eien reached out and flicked a switch. The console hummed to life.

She blinked at him. “How did you do that?”

“I want to be a pilot.” He ducked his head. “Someday.”

She clapped his shoulder. “Okay, buddy. You wait for this ship to boot up. Then get the heck out of here. Got it?”

His face blanched, and his eyes flicked to the gaunt faces behind him, but he nodded. “I understand.”

Mel gave the children one last wave, and then headed back outside, to where the battle continued to rage. The brothers wove around each other, snapping and vying for a lethal opening. Blood flowed from Jahle’s muzzle and shoulder, and he limped heavily. A wide gash marred Dogan’s side, but he did not seem to be slowed down by his injury.

If Jahle is going to be a dumbass about his brother, he’s going to need help.

But what could she do? Even without a fever, she was fragile and squishy and it would take one snap of Dogan’s jaws to end her.

What I need is firepower.

Big-ass, bad-ass firepower.

She took a steadying breath as her plan solidified.

“You’re insane, Melissa Harlock,” she muttered. “When you get back to Earth, you better go check yourself into one of those loony bins Jen went to.”

Gripping the sonar evaluator, she staggered her way to the access tunnel she and Jahle had used to enter the spaceport platform. She peered into the darkness and gathered her courage.

She ran down the tunnel, sacrificing steadiness for speed. If she tripped in the darkness, she might break an ankle. If she didn’t hurry, Jahle might die. She ignored the sharp pain in her chest with every breath.

Retracing her steps, she easily found the borebug tunnel. Her lamp light landed on its shiny carapace.

“Here goes nothing,” she murmured. Her heart thundered as she bent down and picked up a nearby rock. With all her strength, she threw it at the borebug. It bounced off the bug’s hard shell.

The bug didn’t move.

“Hey!” she yelled. She threw a second rock, this time harder. “Wake up, you gross thing! Dinner’s here! Thirty minutes or your order’s free!”

She bent down to find another rock, and froze when she heard the skittering of feet. The borebug uncurled itself. Its movements were sluggish, and it took a moment for the creature to right itself. The mandibles opened and closed, and it inched its way toward Mel, hissing and clicking. It filled the access tunnel with its bulk. The musty smell of it washed over her, making her stomach churn.

“Well, crap,” Mel said. “Don’t you make your friends from earlier look fun-sized?”

Fear lent her speed. She raced down the tunnel, heart thundering, lungs straining as her legs pumped. At first, the borebug dawdled, but as Mel got farther away, it realized it was about to lose a meal. It shook itself.

She burst into the light, and kept going, praying her eyes would adjust quickly enough. When she peeked over her shoulder, she was just in time to see the borebug emerge from the tunnel. Unlike her, it wasn’t hindered by the sudden change in brightness. It charged toward her, picking up speed as it went.

With each step, her legs weakened, yet she couldn’t stop. Ahead, Jahle and Dogan grappled. Dogan pinned his brother, and bit down on his shoulder.

Jahle roared in pain, and Mel stumbled to a halt. She pressed herself against a ship. Her world seemed to spin. The last of her strength left her. Her legs buckled, and she slid to the ground, wheezing and panting for breath.

The borebug clambered up to her, trying to find her now that she was motionless. She raised the sonar evaluator, and aimed it, angling so the borebug would be driven away from her and toward the battle.

As the mandibles descended, she squeezed her eyes shut and squeezed the trigger. The machine made no noise, but the borebug writhed and spasmed. It drew away from Mel and twisted toward Dogan and Jahle, scrambling away from the sonic vibrations produced by the sonar evaluator. She kept firing.

Mel inhaled, fighting the wave of nausea and pain that washed over her. “Jahle!” she bellowed, praying she was loud enough. “Incoming!”

Jahle heard her. His wide, triangular head turned to her direction, just in time to spot the frantic borebug. For a second, he was motionless, his eyes locked on hers.

Then he bucked, throwing Dogan to the side. He rolled away, and as he did, his body shifted, moving from the strange dragon-like body back to his normal Ennoi one. He was a fraction too slow. Dogan’s clawed foot slammed down on his back, pinning him to the cement floor.

Mel tried to shriek, but her lungs couldn’t seem to draw in enough air. The edges of the world grew hazy and dark. She watched in horror as the borebug slammed into Dogan, knocking him over. Seeing an opportunity at a meal, the borebug clamped down its jaws on Dogan’s neck.

As it continued to scurry away, it dragged Dogan with it. Dogan dug his claws into the ground, trying to cling to the smooth concrete. He tried to shake off the borebug, but it yanked him off balance. He rolled, crushing its body between the floor and his bulk.

“Dogan!” Jahle raised his hand, trying to warn his brother. “Watch the edge!”

Dogan did not hear. He kept rolling, trying to dislodge the borebug. They hit the crack in the landing platform, and for a second, Dogan attempted to catch himself. The borebug’s frantic activity kept him from finding purchase on the edge.

They tipped, disappearing over the edge of the platform.

“No!” Jahle’s heartbroken cry filled the air.

Mel collapsed to her elbows. Her face pressed into the concrete. She wanted to go to Jahle, but her body would not move. A moment later, a shadow fell over her. She rolled her eyes upward, expecting to see Jahle, but instead she saw Eien’s gaunt face.

He tucked his hands into her armpit and hauled her upright. “Come.” he said. “We have to go.”

Across the platform, Jahle lay motionless on the concrete.