Some kind of pheromones being released. He tapped a sensor on his gauntlet, and it scanned for pheromones.
It took it a moment to give--
An alarm sounded.
Kian immediately shifted gears, his curiosity and Cravings fading with every step to the main control boards.
Freya rushed across the room. “What is happening?”
He activated the data feed to see what had caused the proximity alarm. “Incoming.”
Four inbound moved toward their location. No detectable bio signs. However, they moved fast. Not on a direct course, but spread out in a scanning pattern.
He'd seen this before.
“Drones,” Kian said. Possibilities ran through his head, all the potential outcomes flashing through his mind.
Likely, the drones were scanning for the Charro they'd lost contact with--and whoever was controlling them wanted to know exactly why their Charro friends were gone.
They were going to need armor up soon and be ready to move. His gaze ran over her and lingered on her bare toes peeking out under her dress.
“You need to cover your feet.”
She pushed her skirts to the side. “Right.” She darted to the foot coverings he had found for her. Not shoes like Terrans wore, but a more flexible version of the lysteel just for apparel.
“These feel so strange,” she muttered as the liquid metal wrapped around her feet.
“It will protect your—"
Boom!
Two of the windows shattered.
It happened in slow motion.
Kian spun.
Leaped for Freya.
Yanked her to the floor.
The window’s shards rained down on them, clattering as they hit the floor.
“We have to get out of here,” she said over the rattling of the window pieces.
Kian gestured to the nearby wall that would protect them both from line-of-sight attack. “There.” He manifested blasters in each hand and handed one to her.
She nodded and squeezed the handle. “On three.”
“One.”
“Two.”
“Three!”
Freya charged for the wall, blindly aiming back toward the windows and the incoming metal droids.
Kian stood, covering her as he started shooting.
