It was strangely mesmerizing.
Searing heat slapped her in the face, and as Arin looked into the inferno, time slowed to a crawl.
She became aware of the harsh sound of her rasping breath through the crude filter of her respirator.
She became aware of her heartbeat, of her pulse thudding loudly in her ears as she tried to run, but her feet were frozen to the ground; no, actually, it wasn’t that she was frozen, it was just that she was too fucking slow for what needed to happen next.
Arin was wading through molasses, but the flames were moving in real-time.
Perhaps this exquisite hyper-awareness was what happened just before death. She wasn’t afraid. She wasn’t panicked. She wasn’t falling into the pits of despair. All shesaw were the beautiful, hypnotizing red-and-orange flames rolling towards her.
Painful longing filled her, sharp and bittersweet. She would never get to see Rykal again. They’d found something incredible amongst the stars, something she’d never have thought would be possible between his kind and her, a human.
She’d wanted to explore this unnamedthingfurther, teasing it out until it opened like a flower, unfurling from bud to blossom.
But now, death was before her, and she was about to be swallowed into the afterlife.
Rykal.
At least she could die thinking of what might have been.
All around her, people were screaming and turning to run, having also been bitten by the slow-motion bug.
It was hot and noisy, and all she could see were the blinding flames. Heat seared the sensitive skin of her face as a black blur shot out from the flames, and Arin was swept up into the arms of something dark and impossibly fast.
Rykal.
The inferno was at his back, nipping at his heels, chasing them with savage hunger, but Rykal was always one step ahead, moving so fast that he seemed more machine than Kordolian. His legs pumped, his arms flexed, his chest heaved, and they shot down the corridor until they reached a place where the air was thin. Deprived of oxygen, the rolling, raging inferno started to lose momentum.
Rykal’s features were concealed beneath his menacing black visor, but Arin could hear him gasping. Still, he ran, not once slowing his pace, never faltering as he took them farther and farther away from certain death.
There was wind in the tunnel now, which was strange, considering the freighter was a closed environment. The temperature dropped quickly as they escaped the fire, goingfrom searing hot to icy cold in just a few strides. The flames dissipated as the air became thinner, eventually disappearing, as if a bucket of cold water had been poured on them.
There was no oxygen here, but at least the lights worked. They flickered as Rykal shot past.
Still, Rykal ran. He was truly inhuman, with a body made from the stuff of nightmares and a face made for carnal sin. Only he had the audacity to snatch her from the jaws of fate.
Once the threat had well and truly disappeared, he stopped, looking back and forth down the corridor.
Arin pressed her hand against his chest as he set her down.
No movement.
He wasn’t breathing at all.
And here she was, comfortably sitting in his arms with sweet oxygen streaming into her lungs. Arin pulled off her respirator and held it out to him. “Don’t forget to breathe,” she said softly.
Rykal looked down at her through his visor. She no longer thought he looked terrifying in his full armor. He was just… Rykal.
Slowly, his faceless black helmet melted away, revealing his strained features. Faint tendrils of smoke rose from this black armor, teased out by the frigid air. His dark lips were pressed together in a thin line, and there were shadows under his eyes.
“Breathe,” Arin said again, holding her breath as Rykal took the precious oxygen source from her hands and held it to his face, inhaling deeply. The respirator was connected to a condenser unit that Arin had strapped to her body.
Relief flooded through her as she watched him take life-sustaining air.
“That gas in the corridor was highly flammable,” he said, his eyes widening as he took in her appearance. He brought his hand up to the side of her face and caressed her cheek with hisfingers. To Arin’s surprise, they were bare, but even though his touch was gentle, it stung like hell. She flinched.
He handed the respirator back to her. “That’s all I need for now.”
