Page 48 of Queen Isabella

“They’re teasing you. They can see how eager you are to go out.” Bellator clasped her around the waist and snatched her away from the other alphas. “It’s our warm season.” He playfully hustled toward the door, evading the other two.

“Rotten!” She made a face at Phara and Artifex.

“Never!” Artifex attempted to look insulted, but laughed instead.

His laughter was echoed by several of the Vorto who’d joined them for the tour.

Bellator set her on her feet and opened the door. Isa blinked as she stepped into the bright daylight streaming into the foyer. The sun on Tellus was very much like Earth’s, one of the reasonsthis planet was chosen for the Manifest mission. It took a bit for her eyes to adjust. When her vision cleared, the first thing she noticed was how pink the sky was.

“Oh,” she whispered in awe, soaking in the mountainous landscape, as she stepped farther onto the stone patio.

“Don’t go too far.” Bellator pointed out that the veranda extended for twenty feet before dropping off. “I think we’ll need to add barriers here, too. Invicta, please help me remember these locations, so we can discuss it with Artifex later.” He took her hand.

“Of course, my alpha,” the Vorto man replied.

“Thank you.” Isa smiled, appreciating they were thinking of her, but at the moment the view had her preoccupied.

Holding on to Bellator’s hand, she ventured closer to the edge, while taking in the mountain range with its stunning peaks, some snow-capped. The view was as breathtaking as the Grand Canyon, with its striated rock formations, though instead of shades of red these were purple against a cloud-dotted pink sky.

Just gorgeous.Her heart sped up, excited by the wonder of it all.

The hive sat on the side of one mountain, looking out at others in a chain of peaks. There was forest growth on the side of the peaks that grew thicker near the valley.

Still clasping Bellator’s hand, she stepped closer to the edge of the veranda and looked down. The drop wasn’t too steep, but she certainly didn’t want to fall off the ledge, either. Below, on the mountain slope, she had a better view of the plant life. The trees were filled with yellow foliage. They had spiraling red trunks, like fancy manicured topiaries, except the corkscrew was their natural shape. Between the trees in the valley, she spotted a pale violet river. Something flew from one tree to the next. When it landed, she was surprised to discover that instead ofa feathered bird, it looked more like a flying lizard. Everything was entirely foreign and everywhere she looked something new enthralled her.

Isa panned to the left and was further stunned to find massive steps formed into the neighboring mountainside, where crops were being grown. They were similar to the terraces built by the Incas of Peru or cultures of Asia. The staggered fields were fed by a stream flowing down the mountain to the river below. Although it had to be a kilometer away, she could see several Vorto working on the terraces.

“Wow. Are those your fields?” she asked, unsure if they belonged to a neighboring hive or not. Either way it was impressive.

“Yes.” Artifex joined them. “They were built generations ago.”

That didn’t surprise her. The stone walls and water channels would take a long time to build, so they would be maintained and used for generations.

“We grow grains, tubers, greens, and fruits, basically everything,” Phara added as he admired the view with them.

Isa turned to tell the alphas how impressive it all was when she spotted the door they’d just exited through. Actually, it wasn’t the door itself that had her attention, rather the entire building façade carved into the face of the mountain. The edifice reminded her of the cliff dwellings at Mesa Verde or Petra in Jordan. Like those monuments, this amazing building was built into the face of the natural rock. The broad arched entrance was cut into the striated purple marble. The ornately carved portico was flanked by two massive statues of an alien creature that was a mix of a bear and a cat. Between the stunning effigies stretched a second-story balcony. The façade was dotted with rose windows here and there as well as nature inspired carved designs, much like the interior.

“It’s breathtaking,” she gasped in awe.

As Isa stared at the wondrous architecture, something stabbed at the back of her mind and refused to let her fully appreciate how stunning this all was. Before she could put her finger on the thought, she caught a glimpse of a large bear-cat prowling at the edge of the patio. It looked just like the stone statues, except real. Then she spotted another and another. Somehow half a dozen wild creatures snuck up on them while they were admiring the view.

“Oh!” she declared and backed up.

“Halt!” Bellator barked. The mental shout stabbed at her mind while an actual panicked bark emerged from his mouth. At the same time, his hand shot out and snagged her arm.

He caught her just as she was about to step backward off the edge of the deck. His arms wrapped tightly around her and he hugged her against his robust body. Horror filled his dark eyes as well as Artifex and Phara’s.

“You must be careful!” Phara wrapped around her.

“We have to get the barriers built right away.” Artifex joined in the group hug.

It was a relief they’d kept her from falling, and she was deeply touched by this show of affection, but there was still a big problem.

“Hey, there’s dangerous animals,” she murmured against Bellator’s chest, sandwiched amidst the trio.

Artifex pulled back and glanced at the bear-cats. Understanding flickered in his dark eyes. “Ah. Theferoare your hive. They’re in one of theiranimaforms.”

Fero? Anima?Her brow furrowed in confusion. She would’ve repeated the unspoken question, but she knew the guys heard her.

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