He nods, his dark eyes locked on the area where his cybernetic fingers curl around my skin.
His touch, firm yet gentle, gives me a sense of belonging, of safety.
“Gravitational flux from the orbital decay is increasing every few hours.The gravity from the other moon will only up the instability.”
“Then let’s use these lifecords and get back.”
He shakes his head, raising his gaze to mine.“I have tried.They are programmed to return to the Volderen solar system.For a return trip to Mars, they need to be reset to your solar system’s coordinates.”
“Well, let’s get to it.”I debate pointing out he still holds my arm, but I don’t want to break our momentary truce.Plus, if I’m being honest with myself, I like the way it feels.
“I need a ship for that.”He points his chin toward the ceiling.“This is only a temporary place to protect us from the elements connected to a leftover base from my ancestor’s olden days.”
I glance at the light, the terminal, the other minutiae telling me the place still functions.“Well, is there anything here you can use, or maybe a ship nearby?”
A line forms between his eyebrows.He slowly releases my arm, a look of regret or something else flickering across his face.Tapping his fingers on the desk, he sucks on his bottom teeth.“I-I do not know.The thought never crossed my mind.”
“You’re set on going down with the planet so it makes sense you weren’t really thinking ahead.Probably because you hate that arm so much, even though I think it’s beautiful, thatyou’rebeautiful” I snapped my mouth shut.I didn’t mean for that last part to slip out.What the hell, Ellie?
Kael clears his throat.I can only see his side profile where a bright spot of color flares on his cheek.
“You have a strange idea of beauty.”He begins typing again.“However, I can use the computer and my modern lifecord’s scanner to see if there are any ships with a power core.If we find one, we can bring it back here, which should allow me to attempt reprogramming, although, I still do not know what triggered the wormhole to open.”
“Then how did you get here?”
“I…I holed up in one of the caves on Mars—”
“So you were hiding and sulking?”
“No, I do not sulk.For your information, I was testing the limits of this arm by lifting boulders and stalagmites.In doing so, I found my own version of the lifecord prototype and put it on as a test.”He gestures to the room.“Whatever triggered it sent me here.”
“Then we need to figure out what triggers it, and replicate it ourselves once we get the power core.”
Hope flutters its wings in my belly, and for the first time since I found myself stranded on this moon, I feel relief.Doing something, anything, is better than staying here and waiting for the end.
4
Chapter 4
“Howlongwillittake to scan for a power core?”I ask, following Kael through a long, dark tunnel.The only light source is a faint, pulsing navy-blue line running down the right wall.
“It is scanning right now, as we move.I have a neural overlay that allows me to see it if I get in the vicinity, similar to a human radar.This base is not large.Most of the equipment is ancient and broken, so I must rely on the limited tools I possess.”He stops short.
I bump against his spine and try to peer around his side, but the tunnel’s narrow and only allows a person to travel single file down its corridor.
“If this place is in the Voldera system, why haven’t your people sent a scout ship?”
He turns and leans his frame against a wall.The shadows play against his horns, casting their white hue into a gray.His sharp cheekbones stand out, causing his lips to look fuller.
I wonder if he’s a good kisser?
Mentally, I shake myself.This is not the time to think about him in that way.We’re going to die if we don’t get out of here.
His head tilts as his dark gaze roams over my face, and I realize I’ve been staring at his mouth like a lusty teenager.
I clear my throat, and he jumps at the sound, breaking off his stare.
He rubs his forehead.“That is a question I have been asking for the past two Earth years.I have managed to narrow it down to three reasons.”
