TIRIL
Because Chloe is already stressed, I am trying to project calm. I have had a couple of days to prepare for this fight but given that I will be fighting for my life and hers, I am unprepared. Failure will mean losing my chance to have a mate, something I believed impossible until meeting her. Impossible until she said that I was getting out of the cage.
Impossible, unless we both live.
And our lives are my responsibility. It would be nice to sneak out of this building and disappear before the soldiers notice we are gone. But they always seem to be within sight of the door, as if they expect me to break out.
The moment I appear in the doorway, they will attack and there will be a fight. And while I should be able to strike them with my charge from this range, but I want to be sure. “Can you open the door and call them over?”
“I can." She watches me, her lips darker from the kiss. "What are you going to do?”
“I can either knock them out or kill them.” Killing them makes more sense, but the humans don’t have many men and they will not want to lose them.
Her eyes widen as she considers me. “Try to knock them out. It’s not going to look good if they are killed.”
I hadn’t considered that. “Okay, no killing.”
She gives a jerk of her head and puts her hand on the door handle. “Now?”
I step forward and lean down, cupping the back of her head and stealing another kiss. “I pray the banished warriors who came before me watching over us and grant me the chance to prove that I will be a good mate.”
Her fingertips graze my cheek. “You will be a good mate. You are kind and funny and inquisitive, and I enjoy spending time with you.”
“Not just for science?” I tease.
A smile flickers over her lips. “Not just for science.”
She turns the door handle.
“When my markings glow, don’t touch me as you may get a shock. I can touch you though, because I can direct the charge.”
“Got it.” She draws in a breath and yanks open the door. “Guys. I’ve got a situation in here. Can you come and help?”
The soldiers grumble, but I sense them drawing closer. My kam buzz as I let the charge flow through me. My markings glow as I draw my sword and channel the charge along the metal blade.
It’s only when I need to release the charge that I step into the doorway. I know where the soldiers are without looking and I release the charge from the end of my sword at the first one. He drops to the ground unconscious—or at least I think he is. I aim the sword at the other. His weapon is in his hand when he falls.
Still glowing, I pause and reach out with my sensors, searching for any other humans. But it is only me and Chloe.
“That was far quicker than I expected.”
I roll my shoulders and shake off the remaining charge. “Humans do not make a charge, so there was no signal for meto jam before getting my attack in.” Nor did they have time to attack. If they had, my sword would’ve been useless against their projectile weapons.
“Do you also fight with the sword?”
“Yes.” I sheath it, as I no longer need it. “We cannot hold a charge forever, and it is also good against animals.” I step out of the building and into the sunlight for the first time in a month. I fill my lungs with air that is scented with dirt and leaves. The sun strikes my skin and I want to strip off my shirt and bathe in it. But now is not that time. “Do you want to check their pulses before we leave?”
She doesn’t answer, just walks over to where they lay and touches their necks one at a time before glancing up at me. “They will survive. How long will they be out for?”
“It’s hard to tell, which is why we need to leave.” I’ve seen people shake off a charge in less time than it takes to eat dinner. Others will take half a day. And they are human, not Honey which makes guessing harder. “You need to lead the way.”
She presses her lips together and takes a moment as if to work out where she is, then she starts walking.
And I follow.
We walk in silence as the sun climbs higher in the sky. My legs protest after a month of little activity, and my throat becomes dry far too quickly. Every step we have taken has been uphill.
She pauses when we reach a track littered with human boot prints. “That way leads to the colony, and that way will take us to the hydro station and the river.”
