Page 26 of The Alien Warrior's Mate

Urgency made his movements swift and sharp. With his free hand, he cut the fuel pipe on Enthara’s side and allowed the spray to release. The onini buzzed at him, roaring in agony. He released his hand from the groove and leaped, slapping his fingers over the rear end at the last minute to keep from falling.

The onini began to die out, dropping in scattered groups to the ground. Korben’s hold slackened and Enthara bumped her tail, lifting him back again. He shot his zapten a grateful look and climbed his way back to Sah-ah.

She bravely arched her lips in a tiny grin. Brown fingers flexed on the handlebars and sweat cooled around her forehead and neck. Korben had to admit that the female seemed to have a knack for controlling the zapten.

He nodded in approval and her grin doubled in size. Just as he was about to compliment her, Enthara’s tail slammed against a tree trunk. He and Sah-ah both jolted, colliding against each other as his zapten began to spiral.

Denizi.

He heard the buzzing rise behind him again like a forewarning note of death. The onini were relentless. He wrapped his fingers around Enthara’s handles, steering her hard to the left. Sah-ah’s curly hair tickled his nose. She was keeping her mouth shut, but he could feel the rising panic lifting off her brown skin.

Korben thought quickly. If they couldn’t outrun, they needed to avoid.

The swarm got louder.

Louder.

They were out of time.

If he didn’t find a refuge now…

There.

He spotted lordrand bushes below and pointed Enthara down. They were heading for a crash landing. He had no time to daintily park his machine the way it so deserved. The zapten was his pride and joy, but there would be no rider to command it if he were stung within an inch of his life.

Harsh winds slapped him in the face and tore his hair back as he nosed Enthara downward. Her back end slammed against a tree branch. Sah-ah jolted forward and he held her steady with a hand around her waist as he maintained their trajectory.

Enthara hit another branch. And another. He heard parts rattling. Disengaging. Shattering. She held together, but the damage to her shell was getting louder than the hiss of the swarm.

Finally, they crashed deep into the lordrand bushes. The scent of the flowers’ sap overwhelmed them, creeping over their skin and tainting the air.

The swarm remained above their hiding place. He glanced up and saw the angry throng swirling overhead, waiting to see if they would resurrect.

Sah-ah mewled in horror. He slapped his hand over her mouth to keep her quiet. Dragging her off Enthara’s back, he locked eyes with his zapten. Enthara nodded swiftly and he pressed a button on his interface to allow her to transform.

The gears whirred, spinning and folding metal slats together. Enthara shifted into her suit form and blasted up into the air. Sweat fell down Korben’s face as he tapped out a code on his interface and allowed Enthara to empty out the rest of her power in a toxic spray.

The onini swarm went into a frenzy, stinging Enthara’s steel frame as if they could punish her for their suffering. Large groups began to fall and the rest pulled rank, leaving him and Sah-ah behind in the lordrand bush.

As the skies cleared, Sah-ah wilted against him and mumbled something in an exhausted voice. Korben hugged his female tightly and summoned Enthara back to the ground. The zapten returned to her giant form and huffed out an exhausted breath, her metal eyelids sinking closed.

A hiss blew past his lips when he saw the dents in her body and the snap of electricity rolling from her exposed gears. Fielding off the onini swarm had taken all of Enthara’s energy. There was only one Plutonian who could recharge her and to do so would require a process that took several sun-cycles.

He brought his fingers to his forehead and rubbed. With Enthara on her emergency fuel, Korben had to be smart. If he made one mistake, he and Sah-ah would be caught in this dangerous grove come nightfall and the onini would be the least of his worries.

Twelve

Sara

Korben walked circles around Enthara,gently soothing his fingers down the dinosaur’s neck. He stroked the exposed wires that had been gouged by the branches when they nose-dived into this bush.

She frowned along with him, feeling the weight of his concern. Enthara’s eyes turned a heavy, navy blue.Sadness.Sara couldn’t understand a word that Korben muttered during his inspection, but she knew that look.

Of loss.

Of pain.

Sure, it wasn’t a life that had been damaged. It wasn’t like he’d lost a sibling, but that right there? She knew that despair. Shewasthat darkness.

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