But it was funny. Just how wonderful she was. Just how terrible. She’d cut off the air recyclers. She had set off the alarms two different times already, though she’d turned them off right after. What else was she doing? He didn't know, but he imagined it was catastrophic. One of the reasons he’d been so obsessed with catching her before he knew her was because he knew the damage an unchecked, uncatchable, uncontrollable force sneaking around a ship could do.
And she was unleashing all her powers on them. Proving she was alive by threatening all of their lives. Had he thought she wasn’t vicious or dangerous? He was a fool for ever having had that notion in his head. She was absolutely beautiful and demented.
“You-” Kldyn sputtered, furious at his reaction. “Silence, you-”
Pain burst over Vytln’s face. Right over the spot he’d been struck with a hammer. He felt his skin cracking and breaking further, heating blood pouring from the open wounds. It hurt, but it didn't stop the laughter that continued to rock his aching body.
Nothing could touch his relief. No pain, not even death, could disrupt this joy.
Kldyn was shaking now, his entire body vibrating with the force of his anger. Fresh blood stained his fist from where he had just punched Vytln across the face. He pulled his arm back, but before he could hit him again, that same male called out-
“Please, Kdlyn! Youhaveto get the envirosuit on! There’s been a hull breech in multiple areas. We are not safe.”
“I am the leader!” Kldyn screamed, whipping around to him, eyes burning. “I am the one who gives the orders around here! You dare to tell me what Ihaveto do?!”
The male stuttered and hedged, needing to insist that Kldyn take the obvious precaution, but scared to push him when he was clearly enraged.
The sharp click of boots announced the arrival of Yl’ln. Vytln only glanced her way long enough to recognize her. To catch her eye as she looked at him. Unmistakable satisfaction in her grin at seeing him broken on the ground. He looked away first, breaking eye contact so he could look back at his trap, still floating out in space.
That wasn’t good enough for Haven. He built that with no intention of a female ever being in it. He could do so much better for her. He would do better for her. Once they were out of here, he would build her a trap every other female would look upon and envy.
“Kldyn,” Yl’ln called to him in a calm but commanding tone. “We have to get our envirosuits on. Let’s go. Now.”
Without waiting for him to reply, she turned and marched off. Kldyn growled, but he trailed after her. An obedient wylp coming at her call. Because he might be head of the family, but she was the one who controlled him. Like Haven said, that was why she had picked him. Vytln would not have come just because she ordered it.
He also wouldn’t have been so foolish as to refuse to put on the envirosuit out of pride. There were a lot of differences between them.
Another one being that he wouldn’t have left a prisoner alone. Even one he thought was broken and subdued. It was just an easier way to lose control of a situation.
Almost on cue, Vytln heard the distinct, harsh, and familiar sound of a metal cutter carving its way through a wall. It was hard to track where it came from in this wide space where the acoustics were bouncing the sound off every direction before making it to his ears, but he didn't need to wait long to figure it out.
Heated metal glowed in a rough, uneven circle where it was cut through. It began to warp and slide even before Haven kicked it out. The wall piece bounced on one of the sofas along the wall. Where it came to rest, the material of the sofa began to smoke and then burst into flames. As it was burning, Haven carefully stepped out of the wall. She was attaching the metal cutter back to her belt, moving slowly and cautiously. Her suit was good against heat, but not quite against literal molten metal.
But she ignored the fire completely as she jumped from the sofa to the ground. As she stepped foot down, she was already running his way, reaching up to take off her helmet.
She was wearing her jacket over the suit. It was covered in dust and smudged grease. But her face was bright and alive and unharmed. Beautiful. Even with a look of worry and horror on her face, she was absolutely beautiful.
“Vytln! Are you alright?” She asked, sliding in on her knees, reaching for him with shaking hands. She dropped the helmet onthe way over, wanting to be able to look at him. He wished she kept it back on for her safety.
“There you are,” he smiled, relieved beyond measure, beyond pain, beyond everything. He still didn't know the fates of the others. He still had lost his home and his ship. But suddenly that didn't matter anymore, because the most precious thing had come back to him. “My perfect little pest. I don’t think I’ve ever loved you more.”
Haven blinked at him, then her entire face crumpled in annoyance. “Really?! Your face is shattered andthat’sthe first thing you saying to me?”
Chapter 46
Haven
Vytln had been beaten and tortured. And while it had been clear from afar, she couldn’t really appreciate just how badly until she was right in front of him.
His face…
His skin didn't rip or tear or cut like hers did. Instead, it cracked and shattered, like stone. There on his cheek, like splinters in broken glass, was a brand new scar that reached all over the side of his face. It looked painful, catastrophic. She was shocked that his jaw wasn’t broken and hanging cockeyed.
But he was smiling at her normally with such a tender look of joy, it was like he didn’t even notice it or any of the other new marks across his body.
“Are you okay?” She touched gently on his neck, his shoulder, places that weren’t newly broken open. It was easy to tell the difference between the new and old cracks, as the new cracks had a much brighter glow around them. She shook her head quickly before he could respond. “Of course you’re not being okay. But can you standing?”
“Not entirely sure,” he admitted, still smiling at her.
