“Stay here. Don’t move. I will be back.”
Panicked, I reached out to search for him, but he was gone.
Chapter 20: Ror’k
I tried to drown out the howling of the wind as sheets of drywall and pieces of debris flew at me from all directions.
I hated having to leave Dottie all alone, but the basket of felines was still upstairs. The wind had ripped it out of my hands when I’d reached for Dottie to keep her from blowing away. I had to go find them; they were completely helpless in that basket, and we’d put them there.
I searched in the chaos of the room, even as the edge of the tornado lifted pieces of the wall and ceiling into the air. Something big and heavy smashed into the side of my head, and the world spun. An intense ringing filled my ears, making me grab my head in an effort to make it stop. As I did, something even heavier knocked me over. I landed on my knees.
For a moment, I found myself mentally back in another storm, the one that had changed the trajectory of my life as a hunter forever.
Hail and rocks pelted my shoulder as I climbed over the broken ridge in search of the young hunters lost in the cyclone. It was their first time on a planet, and it was my responsibility to keep them safe as they honed their skills against the scourge.
But the storm had taken us all by surprise. And it had quickly proven deadlier than the scourge themselves. I’d watched as it swept one young hunter from the ledge of the cliff and into the raging sea before I could get the rest of them to safer territory. Several were now hunkered inside a cave I’d found as a temporary shelter, but we’d lost several in our group. Young Ajar’k had taken a scuttler’s claw to the leg earlier, and he needed a medical device now before the toxin overcame his system.
I pushed forward, the claws of my feet sinking into the wet mud. The roar of the storm drowned out every other sound, but a faint cry reached me through the wind. I almost thought I’d imagined it. But I turned toward it and spotted movement by a cluster of boulders. Two Xarc’n forms crouched low, using the rock as a shield against the storm.
I called out, moving faster as relief surged through me. I motioned to them to get down on all fours like I was. It gave me more purchase and less surface area for the wind to pick me up. They scrambled toward me, their bodies shaking from exhaustion and cold. We were built to fight and for hardship, but even we had limits.
I guided them toward the cave, following the ridge and using it as shelter from the wind. We were so close to safety. But suddenly, the wind shifted sharply, and the air pressure changed too fast; my ears hurt. The storm surged with a violent blast. Something hard and rough slammed into me. The ground vanished from under my feet, and I was hurtling through the air. The world blurred as I struck the rocks with a crushing force. Then there was nothing but darkness.
I forced myself to focus.
This was a different storm, on a different planet, and the ones I needed to protect were still alive. And this time I would succeed, even if it was the last thing I did. Gritting my teeth, I braced against the tumultuous gale and trudged forward.
And there in front of me, caught on a door handle, was the basket of felines. I grabbed it with both hands and pulled it free. The wind tunneled through the hallways, flinging the metal canisters from the front counter at me. I curled my body around the basket, shielding the terrified animals with my chest and arms.
A sharp sound split the air as the ceiling above me shifted. Plaster broke loose and rained down from above. A loose beam swung in an arc, striking my shoulder with enough force to drive me to one knee. Pain shot down my arm.
I focused on the tiny creatures I was protecting, and Dottie who waited for me below. I had to get to her and continued staggering toward the stairs. One of the metal brackets fell free from the wall and slammed into my ribs, knocking the breath from my lungs. I held on and forced my legs to keep moving. Each step felt heavier, and the pessimistic side of me screamed that I would not make it, that I would fail again like I had before, except this time I was old and no longer in my prime. I wouldn’t be given another chance.
This was my fault. I’d miscalculated, just as I’d done so many decades ago. I hadn’t taken Roger’s warning of the twisters seriously enough. I’d seen these storms forming over the land from the mothership, but from that vantage point, they’d appeared less powerful than the other storms that raged across this planet, especially the ones that formed over the ocean. But while these tornadoes fizzled out fast, I hadn’t realized the amount of damage they could do in their short existence.
I thought of Dottie alone in the basement. I imagined her crawling out from the wreckage alone after the storm and finding me lifeless and unmoving. Would her eyes shed liquid for me? How would she make it home on her own after the storm? What about the kittens? Even now, they were depending on me to keep them alive. Would Dottie remember me as a hunter who failed her?
No! I could not let that happen.
I could barely see through the debris flying around in the air, but I found the door to the basement mostly by feel. Hinges resisted under the pressure of the wind, but I shoved it open, and the door gave way enough for me to slip through with the basket held close to my chest. The door immediately slammed shut behind me, rattling the entire frame. I was surprised the door and frame even held considering the destruction outside. This basement must’ve been constructed to withstand these storms.
“Ror’k?”
“I found them.”
“Where are you? I can’t see in the dark.”
I squinted and saw her tiny form moving about blindly, her arm reaching forward.
“Stop. There is broken glass in front of you. Stay where you are.”
I hurried over, carrying the basket with me. A sense of rightness bloomed in my chest the moment we touched. She was safe. And so was I. I could rest now. This underground room had proven itself strong enough to protect us from the storm.
Relief washed over her face as well, and her hand dropped to the basket.
“You found them!”
“Yes. I found them.”
