Page 38 of Monstrous Hunt
Surely it’d take a hell of a long time for a whale-sized creature to eat everybody on Earth. Right? The image of a space whale flying through the sky, scooping up giant mouthfuls of people and straining them out like krill, filled my head. “If an alien lifeform that large was here, it’d be all over the news. People would be disappearing too quickly.”
Rizan rolled over, turning his face up to mine, though he kept his head on my knee. “By the time news of Myrm hits Earth’s airwaves, it’ll be too late. Mrions will have already infected a majority of the population mostly unnoticed. There are a few signs that we know to look for, and I haven’t seen any indication yet of an outbreak.”
“Like what?” I asked, gnawing on my lip.
“The most common sign is viral infections combining into new mutations that spread quickly throughout the population,” Snryx replied. “Mrions mimic viral replication to get around the host’s immune system.”
“Common viruses leaping across species is another sign,” Lohr added. “Or entire populations of birds or other innocuous species suddenly dying in mass quantities. Mrions may infect a lesser species to gain a foothold in a planet’s wildlife before leaping to the more sentient species.”
“You’re scanning for viral outbreaks and haven’t found anything alarming yet?”
Rizan rubbed his cheek against my knee. “Constantly. There have been a few articles that I tagged for further review, but nothing major enough for me to suspect mrions.”
“But you think they’re here. Now.” Nervous energy pulsed through me. I wanted to leap up and pace frantically back and forth, but I didn’t want to disturb everyone. If I moved to the edge of the bed, everyone would leap into action to help me up or fetch me a drink or a robe. This time, I’d asked Rizan to get me a warm, fuzzy robe that felt like a cloud wrapped around me.
“If there were Sirian cells at the original crash site, then the next logical conclusion is that site was a decoy only,” Lohr said.
I could hear the doubt in his voice, though. A faint shadowy thread of distrust. “Why, though? What’s the significance of Sirian cells? I know it upset you before, but I’m not quite following.”
“It would mean that DSC was responsible for sending a contaminated biologic to Earth. The Sirian cells would have been able to control the Balaenoptera’s route to its final destination, while also interfacing with any mrions that may have been present.”
“But you didn’t find any evidence of Myrm at the site, right?”
“Only a slight trace, which is even more suspicious,” Kroktl replied. “Why was the best Dynosauros squad sent to eliminate Myrm when no threat materialized?”
“Unless they wanted to have a reason to eliminate us,” Snryx muttered.
I rubbed my temples. I was a fairly intelligent person. I’d made significant progress toward my doctorate and had done well in all of my classes except mathematics. Maybe I didn’t understand their civilization at all, but it just didn’t make sense to me. “You were already supposed to go to the termination place, right? Why would they need to eliminate you here if they already planned to end the squad once you went back?”
“True,” Snryx said slowly, shaking his head. “We were ordered to report immediately to Nyan Station for decommissioning. Either way, our squad was to be terminated. I don’t think they expected Axxol to revolt.”
“But they were prepared for that,” I pointed out. “The other squad was their contingency plan.” My mind seemed to shimmer and spark for a moment, lighting up like a message board. “They had to be sure you wouldn’t survive. Either you would follow orders and be eliminated, or the backup squad would be sent in to make sure you died.”
Nodding, Lohr lightly touched his tongue to my shoulder. “Exactly right. They needed us to die one way or another, while also eliminating the possibility that humans could be compatible mates.”
“By wiping out the entire planet,” I whispered, tears filling my eyes. “I guess I don’t think in such cold-hearted mercenary terms. So many lives wiped out, and for what?”
“Absolute control of Sirian technology.” Kroktl pulled me against him, his other arm wrapping around my stomach to shield me and his baby. “But they failed. They’re going to continue to fail. There’s no fucking way we’re going to let them get you or the youngling.”
I clenched my jaws and swallowed back a sob that threatened to escape. “We should talk about it. Just in case. I don’t want to end up in their control if they manage to kill you.”
“Agreed.” His lips brushed my temple. “The squad will take care of you one way or the other, baby. If I fall, they’ll take over your protection.”
Outwardly, Snryx seemed calm and cool like usual, but his voice was gruff, and his implements stiffened in a tight braid down his back. “Before I die, I will ensure that you die painlessly and quickly.”
“If our medic dies before I do, then I shall also ensure your death.” Lohr curled his tongue around my arm. “It may not be as painless, unfortunately, but my venom is extremely toxic. They won’t be able to resuscitate you.”
Talking about my lovers killing me and our baby shouldn’t give me such relief, but it did. I didn’t want us to end up in the control of an evil galactic empire that thought nothing of wiping out an entire planet of people and animals. But I also didn’t want to dwell on the idea of all of us dying. Not now when I’d finally found such love and vicious loyalty.
“Maybe I can help look for news?” I suggested. “It’d give me something to do.”
Rizan popped up, eyes bright. “Of course. I can bring you a computer if you’d like to help scan. You may see something significant to humans that wouldn’t register to me as important.”
“That’d be great.”
Immediately he slid off the bed and trotted from the room. I lay my head against Kroktl’s chest, listening to the strong, steady thunder of his heart. Imagining him holding our daughter in his massive hands made tears fill my eyes.
His absolute, unwavering devotion and dedicated care to her—to us—made all of this possible. If he wasn’t the kind of man who could learn, adapt, and even overcome his own natural instincts to kill off competition, then I wouldn’t be lying here with his squad wrapped around me.
