Page 47 of Warrior Rescued

“We won’t abandon whoever survived here. When my companions rescue us, we’ll hunt for them and honor the dead,” he promised.

“Thank you,” Elena murmured.

“I’m going to salvage one of the empty pods.” He knelt by the closest vacated unit, flicked on the levitator and maneuvered it out of the group.

“I’m sorry for losing it.” Elena grimaced at him as he pushed the pod back to the Miran Sona wreckage.

“Please do not apologize, precious.” He shook his head. “I’m going to untie the rope on the other unit and we’re going to get out of here.”

Elena

“Get in.” Payim pointed to the stasis pod.

“You want me to ride?” Elena’s brow furrowed as she looked from the rope tied to his waist then up at the imposing rock wall towering overhead.

“Yes. Sit in the far back.”

She couldn’t imagine how he was going to haul the stasis pod to the top, period—much less with her added weight.

“I’ll just make it heavier. I can climb.”

She was by no means an expert rock climber, but she was better than when she first arrived in this hellish place.

“No. You weigh next to nothing. But if you sit at the back it will tip the unit enough that the levitator should glide along the rock wall,” he explained.

“Okay,” she hesitantly replied as she got into the hibernation chamber and scooted to the very back.

Payim pulled off his boots, tossing them in the pod with the rest of their stuff. She quickly stashed them in the bag secured inside the chamber then anxiously watched as he gripped the rocky wall.

“Please be careful,” she murmured when Payim started climbing.

“I will, but if something happens, seal yourself in.” He glanced over his shoulder.

That’s not encouraging.She gripped the pod tighter as she slumped low in the chamber, uncertain she wanted to watch.This is such a terrible idea.Yet what else could they do?

Her eyes widened as Payim began tugging the nose of the stasis pod into the air as he climbed. Just as he said, the moment it was vertical the pod levitated off the wall instead of dragging on the rock like dead weight.

But I doubt it’s that much lighter.

She bit her lip as she balanced in the end of the chamber, holding on for dear life. The last thing Payim needed to worry about was her tumbling out.

Payim’s fingers and toes dug into the rocky crevices, working in tandem, and they steadily rose higher.

How in God’s name is he doing this?

The man was a demigod. If there was ever a question that he wasn’t human, that was absurdly obvious now. No human could accomplish such a feat.

Her faith wavered when they reached the ledge that jutted out horizontally overhead, like an insurmountable ceiling. No matter how amazing Payim was, he was still mortal. She held her breath as Payim stretched out, reaching for the rim, just beyond his grasp. Anxiously, she watched his toes curl, gripping the rock tighter as he strained to latch on.

Come on. Come on. You’ve got this.She silently cheered him on.

When he miraculously made contact and grabbed ahold of the ledge, her breath burst out, but she quickly muffled it because this was hardly over. His feet released their grip on the rock and then he was precariously swinging by one hand, the other looking for purchase. Her stomach was in her throat as the pod tethered to his waist also swayed like a pendulum. His fingers brushed the rim of the rocky shelf, then they swung out of reach again.

Oh God. This is insane.

On the next pass, he used the momentum to swing higher and she was certain he’d lose his lone grip, but somehow, he managed to grab the ledge. Payim’s biceps bunched as he did a pull-up then threw one then another leg over, lying on the shelf. Her eyes widened when he reached down and pulled the rope, tugging the pod onto the ledge.

“Holy shit, you did it!” she murmured in awe.

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