Page 16 of Her Alien Matchmaker
I kept still, so I didn’t give the sergeant a reason to notice us, to hurt Aaron.
This is a nightmare.How could I have been so stupid, thinking XVU wouldn’t be using my research behind my back, before thorough testing had been conducted?Another thought flitted in my head.Would they have killed me after the project concluded to protect their secrets?
The incinerator, located close to the surface of the facility, would have taken care of my body, like it did with test subjects when our experiments killed them.It’s what I would have deserved.Hell, I deserved what was happening now, but Aaron didnotdeserve it.
Kastor lifted Jetarin off the ground with one hand and pulled the Volderen closer.“Do you feel that?This implant, thanks to your contributions, is allowing me to connect to your neural pathways.I will crush you.I am too strong for you to control.Now, experience the might of XVU, of humanity, and see what’s coming for your race.”
Jet could control the other soldiers, but not Kastor.Not good at all.
His comment about the implant sparked something deep in my brain.We made the collars to subdue Volderens and to interact with the implants, in case one of our people lost control.I shifted my hand to my purse, digging around inside until my fingers clasped a cold metallic object.
Kastor, now only two feet from Jet, would kill the alien.If that happened, we’d all be doomed.
“Baby, I need you to tuck yourself into a ball, make yourself as small as possible, okay?”
Aaron gave me a solemn nod, then sat down and hugged his knees, tucking his head down and resuming his elemental table count in a whispered voice.
Afraid to think about my next move too deeply, I jumped to my feet and sprinted to the lumbering super soldier, hoping my movement would draw attention away from Aaron and onto me.
I need to pounce on his back.Two more seconds.
The other soldier yelled at his commander, but I didn’t hear gunshots.The screaming service member made the bigger man pause, his head beginning to turn.
I slammed against his spine and dug my nails into the skin of his unprotected neck, pulling myself up and wrapping an elbow around his windpipe.
He thrashed, his hands trying to grab my legs as I yanked them around his middle, knowing I only had one second or two before he’s squash me like a bug.
“You fucking bitch,” he growled, “I will pull you apart.I’ll—”
Snap.The sound of the collar locking in place nearly made me collapse from relief, but I wasn’t finished.Still gripping his neck, I used a finger to touch the shock ring on my finger, then let go before I also received the astronomical voltage.
Jet’s eyes widened as his mouth broke out into a huge grin.
“Tag.You’re it,” I croaked, panting from the adrenaline and effort it had taken to stay on Kastor’s back.
Kastor stood frozen, electrical blue sparks arcing across his body as they searched for the quickest way to the ground.
I released the ring button and nodded at Jet, who rushed in and slammed his hand upward, crunching the big man’s nose and spraying his eyes with a fistful of sand.
Major Kastor stumbled backward, his fists frantically wiping at his face, his voice a low growl.“I willkillyou.I will…” His hands fell to his sides, and he stiffened, opening his bulging eyes, which stared at Jetarin with a blank, glassy stare.
“Your first mistake was threatening them.”Jet’s attention swiveled to Aaron and me, then swept over the soldier who still stood with his gun pointed in my direction, his eyes also glassy and empty.“Your second mistake?Reminding me you are not the only person who understands how to use an augmented neural implant.After all, Ididcontribute everything you know.”He narrowed his eyelids.“Now, I want all of you to get on your hands and knees and eat dirt.”
Every soldier did exactly as Jetarin instructed, digging in the sand like dogs and shoving it into their mouths.
The tension went out of my shoulders, and I laughed hysterically as tears fell from my eyes.
The hovering helicopter flew away.Ten seconds later a loud explosion shook the canyon walls, dislodging pebbles and small rocks to crash onto the ground.
“They will not bother us again, but we need to leave soon.The other unit is on the way.”Jet rushed over to me and touched my cheek, his eyes running quickly down my body then over Aaron.“You are not hurt?”
Aaron shook his head and ran to me, clinging to my neck while I supported his weight with my arms.
“We’re okay,” I said, forcing my laughter and tears to stop, pushing the hysteria away.“But we need to get out of here.”The soldiers continued rooting around on the ground.Strings of saliva and mud fell from the corners of their lips as they continued throwing sand into their mouths.“Areyouokay?Is your lifecord thing fixed yet?”
He wiped the drying blood from his head and face.“I am fine.You are well aware how fast my people can heal.”
True.It had been one of the many things we’d been trying to replicate for the super soldiers.
