It spoke of how close they were. And how hard it would be for Brie to leave him behind to follow his orders.
"Damn you, Diesel," Kira whispered in defeat.
He couldn't even let her properly hate him.
Diesel kicked Bate's memorial, grabbing the launcher inside along with the pulse rifle in Bayside's marker. "See you on the other side, Nixxy."
"We should go," Brie said in a flat voice as Diesel headed into the forest beyond the monument.
Seconds later, Kira heard him roar to those waiting in the tree line. "On me!"
Brie left Kira there, walking away without another word.
Graydon took Kira's arm, tugging her in Brie's direction. "They're right. We can't stay here. We need to go."
Kira resisted, her feelings complicated as she stared at the spot where Diesel had disappeared.
"I know how you feel, but there's no time," Graydon said in a tight voice.
Kira let him pull her away, facing forward and jogging after him as they followed Brie.
No one spoke as they made their way down the hill, moving as quickly as possible through the snow.
"I know Diesel said you had a smuggling ship waiting, but Pallas's would be a better option," Kira said when Brie stopped to study their surroundings.
Pallas's ship was likely faster and better equipped for a fight.
Brie shook her head. "I'm afraid that's impossible. He took off early this morning. No one saw him leave."
That rat bastard. He'd abandoned Kira right when she needed him. Again.
"This is why I didn't want him involved with my business," Kira told Graydon.
Her lover's jaw flexed, his eyes chips of ice. "I see why."
Graydon's anger at Pallas's betrayal was palpable. The air heavy with tension.
"I have a team escorting the All Father to the smuggler's ship as we speak," Brie explained. "We're meeting them there."
"You've thought of everything," Kira said dryly, not sure how pleased she was about that fact. She’d always hated being the last one to know.
"Diesel did," Brie corrected, walking away.
"Of course, he did," Kira muttered.
Graydon arched an eyebrow, falling into step beside her as she started after the human. "This puts a damper on things. What are your plans now?"
"For now, we'll rendezvous with Odin. Waiting for the Wanderer to arrive is no longer an option if the Tsavitee are here."
Frustration nipped at Kira. As usual—when things went wrong, they did so at light speed.
"It might be time to think about calling in Harlow's reinforcements," Graydon put forth.
"You don't need to remind me. I'm already considering it."
For now, though, their first step was to get off the planet and find somewhere safe to hunker down while they tried to intercept the Wanderer from flying into a trap. After that, they'd see about those reinforcements.
A high whine from behind them came an instant before the trees in front of them were strafed with pulse blasts.
