Chapter 16
CristOF felt his heart squeeze tightly when the communicator only conveyed static. The shuttle had been shot down. His female was trapped on an island with the enemy, with no way to defend herself. She may be injured from the impact. He refused to think of her any way other than being alive.
“Kitana!” He hit his fist against the console just in front of where he sat in the co-pilot’s seat.
“Easy, Warrior CristOF. We’re only a few minutes from the island.” TylOR told him from the seat behind him.
“Warrior SimON and the medic are most than likely dead. That means she is all alone facing the enemy. I feel this overwhelming rage…”
“That, my friend, would be the mate’s pull to protect and claim his mate.”
“It’s real? I’ve only heard stories about that?”
TylOR eyed him warily. “It’s real...and extremely dangerous for anyone standing in between you and your mate.”
CristOF squeezed the arms of his chair to let out some of his frustration. The feeling of helplessness did not sit well with him. He tried to distract himself by looking out the viewing screen and using the shuttle’s radar to detect where the bodies were located.
“There are three bodies at the campsite; one has low life signs. Three other heat signatures, two traveling through the woods and one is on the beach.”
His shuttle was coming up on the shore they were about one hundred feet away. A small figure caught his attention. “There she is!”
CristOF watched as Tera came out of the woods. She was headed for a boat that had been pulled up on the shore. What in Kitana was she doing? She was completely exposed. That boat would do her no good if the rebels shot her—or it—with their blasters.
“What is she up to?” TylOR asked, coming to look over his shoulder.
“I don’t know.”
Closer now, he could see her reach inside his coat, which she still wore, and pull out blade. He gaped in amazement as she sunk the bland into the inflatable part of the boat, rendering it useless. Then she headed back into the woods.
“She sabotaged the rebels’ boat, keeping them from leaving. That is brave—foolish, but brave,” TylOR commented.
“Take us over the trees in the direction that she went,” CristOF ordered the pilot.
“We won’t be able to land in the trees, sir.” The pilot looked back at the commander for support.
“He’s right, we won’t be able to land in that,” Commander CristOF said.
“I don’t plan to land, I plan to jump.”
He walked over to the door and manually opened the ramp.
“Warrior CristOF, halt!” TylOR shouted out.
CristOF ignored his commander; the first time in his career he’d ever done so. There was no time to apologize. He sensed the other males’ closeness to his mate. He would never allow her to face them alone.
Without second-guessing himself, he jumped. He aimed his body at the nearest tall tree and reached out his hands to grab hold of a branch. The first branch broke on contact and he had to grab another as he started to fall again.
Finally he was able to hold onto one, ignoring the pain he felt in his arms. Getting his feet in place he climbed down the tree swiftly. He halted at the base of the tree, sifting through the sounds of the forest for anything unnatural.
There, toward the west he could hear two pairs of heavy feet tromping through the trees. They didn’t even try to cover their steps. That had to be the rebels. Just to the right of the heavy footsteps came the sound of lighter steps, soft and hesitant—Tera.
His first instinct was to go directly for Tera, but he had to do something about the males following after her. They were too dangerous to ignore. He headed for the one closest to him. The stupid male wasn’t even trying to keep his presence hidden. He obviously didn’t know CristOF was there.
Listening for the footsteps, he halted by a large tree. Just as the male started to run past him, he jumped out tackling him from behind. He could have used his blaster and shot the male in the back but that was not an honorable way for a warrior to fight. He wouldn’t hunt unless he made it fair.
The male used his elbow to hit CristOF in the side to get him off of him. When he reached for his blaster, CristOF kicked his hand making the blaster fall about five feet away. The male struggled to get to it, but CristOF grabbed his feet and yanked, making him fall to the opposite side.
They struggled wrestling each other. The male somehow reached to free his blade and tried to stab CristOF, but he wasn’t in the mood to be stabbed twice in one day. He grabbed the male’s hand and twisted the blade in a different direction.
The feel of the blade sinking into flesh was sickening. Both of them stiffened and looked into each other’s eyes. Light faded in his opponent’s eyes as death approached.
“Goddess,” the male whispered on his last breath.
CristOF let go of him and he fell to the ground dead. Taking a life never came easy for him. It was a shame that he had to take the life of one of his own people. He had lost so many people to death; watching his grandmother and grandfather die of old age had been disheartening. Watching a life end, even one of an enemy, was a sad thing to behold.
A scream tore through the jungle, bringing his thoughts back to the present. “Tera.”
He jumped to his feet and began running in the direction of the scream. CristOF’s heart raced. He had to get to his mate. She was his and he would protect her with his own life. He prayed to the Goddess that he had not taken too long.
Just ahead of him he could hear a struggle taking place. Tera was going to have to face off against a warrior she had no way to fight. He prepared himself to expect anything.
