My ba’clan ripple as energy passes over them.
Scanning.
The Gryken is scanning.
It would have picked up energy signatures of three humans that have now suddenly disappeared.
An impossible occurrence as far as it knows.
But I wait, hoping it thinks it’s been a mere error.
Across the clearing from us, I can see my womb-mate stiffening underneath the cover of his ba’clan.
I can almost feel his tension…
Something is wrong.
I am seconds away from mounting an offence when I sense movement.
My ba’clan bristle as another loud thump shakes the earth again.
One huge leg of the Scrit rises and falls.
It is continuing on.
Heading to the water.
It is a good thing the body of the one we killed is no longer there—transported to the ship along with the materials we scavenged.
We will be okay for now.
But I remain cocooned.
Not one muscle in me moves till the Scrit has gone far away from us, and then, I breathe.
My eyes meet Adee’ra’s.
There is water in hers, but she blinks it away.
“Thank you,” she whispers.
I want to ask her what she is expressing gratitude for when she inhales sharply.
Her gaze flicks down me and catches.
I do not have to look down at myself. I already know what she is seeing.
In order to create the cocoon, my ba’clan are no longer wrapped around my being.
I am bare.
Adee’ra’s throat moves and her body warms. I can feel the change in temperature beneath me, against my skin.
There’s a curiously strange scent coming from her.
Faint.
Very faint. But there nonetheless.
It is different from her fear scent. Sweet as well, but not as powerful.
Instead, there’s a spice to it and I sniff, trying to determine where it is emanating from, for it doesn’t seem to be coming from her pores.
She makes a grating sort of sound in her throat that makes my ears perk and she shuffles against me a little.
“Is it gone now?” She isn’t meeting my gaze. “Are we safe?”
There is something wrong with her.
Her skin is warming even more and her cheeks are flushed.
It is a healthy color, one that makes her skin glow in the star light and I wonder what she looked like before the Gryken invaded.
Is this a preview of what she is supposed to look like all the time?
“You are warming up…”
Her gaze darts to me and then away, the warmth in her skin increasing.
“Um…it’s just that…you’re naked and you’re on top of me.”
I don’t understand what she is trying to say.
If she were on all fours, it would be more understandable.
That is the mounting position.
Or…it could simply be because I am bare.
I call my ba’clan back to me and the shroud around us disappears.
I’m left looking into those strange brown eyes as she stares at me.
“You’re going to take some getting used to,” she whispers, before her gaze turns to the area around us.
That’s when she rises up on her elbows.
I already know what she is seeing before I take a look.
It’s what’s always left behind after the Gryken pass through.
For they take. They destroy.
They leave nothing.
As I focus on Adee’ra, the terror that had just been in her gaze repeats in my mind.
I will fight for this small being.
I will fight for her freedom as I would have liked others to fight for mine.
Chapter Nineteen
ADIRA
Fer’ro rises and I follow him.
We’re in a clearing and despite the darkness, I’m aware of the sudden space around us because everything is flat.
I can’t believe how close the Gryken came to crushing us.
I can’t believe we survived.
I look behind me in the direction that’s it gone and it is still close enough for me to make it out clearly against the starlight.
Like a huge dark tower of doom.
Seeing a machine standing there so close makes me quake inside.
But I don’t get to stand and look at it for long because Fer’ro is grasping me by the hand and we’re running again.
He cuts to the side, back toward the cover of the trees and it is only because he is holding my hand why I don’t stumble as we move through what’s left of the forest.
“There’s water ahead, somewhere. A small source…and shelter too. We will rest there till the Gryken leaves this place.”
I open my mouth to ask him how he knows this but I don’t question it.
He is the only reason why I’m still alive.
The only reason we are still alive.
Off to the left, Sam is running, but when my gaze settles on her and then flicks to Ga’Var, I see his gaze on me.
My spine stiffens a little as I run. I didn’t expect him to be looking my way.
But he’s not looking at me.
He’s looking at where my hand meet’s Fer’ro’s, and it must be the darkness, the shadows, but something unsettling moves across his gaze.
Behind us, San’ten carries Mina.
She’s still unconscious. Limp. And I wonder how much time she has left.
The parasite is growing at a rate that isn’t “normal”—if you could call any of this normal.
We’re heading to what looks like a craggy hill and I glance back in the direction of the lake.
The machine is still there, standing tall in the night.
I wonder if it has people inside it.
No, I don’t wonder.
I know it does.
And we can’t help them.
My heart clenches and I have to pull my gaze away as I focus ahead.
If Fer’ro could help them he would have. Wouldn’t he?
He said they’d come to save us.
And I’m beginning to believe it.
We’ve slowed to a walk now, maybe because they’re being cautious, or maybe because they are tired.
But I doubt it’s the latter.
My legs are weak, I’m still limping, but I push forward.
“This will do.” Fer’ro’s voice takes me from my ruminations and I realize we’ve stopped walking.
Before us is a dark open space.
A small cave.
San’ten is the first to enter, disappearing into the darkness and Fer’ro turns to look at me.
“Go in. It is safe.”
I don’t ask how he knows. I’m past thinking his capabilities are anything like mine.
Sam grabs my hand and we make our way into the dark hole but right before we enter, I glance behind me.
Fer’ro is facing Ga’Var.
There are no words passing between them—at least, none that I can hear—but there’s an obvious aggression in the air. Like two separate charges of electricity facing each other.
We don’t go far inside and as I slide down on the ground, my eyes remain on both of them.
I can hardly see them out there, but a low hiss followed by another tells me that I was right.
“Did we miss something?” Sam whispers. “What’s wrong?”
San’ten speaks from so close behind us, I nearly jump. “He has shown you himself. His womb mate is concerned.”
He’s put Mina down and is crouched over her, and even though he’s talking to us, his focus is still on her…on her belly.
“What?” Sam whispers.
“He has shown you himself bare.”
My eyes widen a little as my gaze darts back to where Fer’ro and Ga’Var are standing.