Alien Freak - Calista Skye Page 0,84

asteroid about to impact right here and kill us all.

Suddenly, all the Bululg let go of the net and draw away, towards the edge of the woods.

IruBex looks up. “Ah. That should be—”

The rest of the sentence is drowned in a metallic scream of air being torn as the fireball screeches through the air, lighting up the ground in bright yellow.

There’s an insane bang as it hits the monastery tower and crashes into the woods beyond.

The tower sways. Then a huge rock comes smashing down one foot from me, impacting so hard if deafens me and shakes the ground.

I briefly panic as it looks like my right hand is trapped under it. I try to pull at it, but I’m still paralyzed and it won’t budge. The hand is stuck, but it doesn’t hurt at all, so it can’t be that bad.

The tower topples over, slowly, then faster. And suddenly it’s raining thousands of huge, flat rocks. Some of them slam together and break in a hail of sparks, while others fall into the woods and knock flat gigantic trees. They fall all around me, thumping into the soft ground.

Yeah, this is a better way to go. Just crushed by rocks.

I close my eyes.

The infernal hailstorm doesn’t last for long. And when it’s over, I’m still both alive and inside the net. None of the rocks came closer to me than the first one, but all around is a total chaos. Exactly like the aftermath of a game of Jenga, except a million times bigger.

It’s suddenly very dark and quiet. Of the tower, only the lower five floors remain – the rest is scattered on the ground in irregular heaps.

I perk up my ears.

That sounded like—

“Averie!”

That voice!

I draw breath and try to yell “here,” but I’ve been tasered good, and my voice won’t obey.

“Averie!” The voice is deep and urgent, echoing from the rocks.

Oh, I hope he sees me soon…

Then he’s there, a large shape in the light from three moons, red and wonderful. He jumps lightly up on two fallen rocks that are steadying each other in an upside down V.

Blue eyes scan the ruins.

And then sees me.

“Averie! Oh, Sweet Fate!” He rips the net off me and bends down. “Are you all right, my love?”

I can only wheeze. “Iru… Bex…”

He frowns at my trapped hand, a worried look on his face. “What was that, love?”

“She’s trying to say my name,” comes the cold voice. “I think she means it as a kind of warning.” IruBex steps out from behind a flat stone the size of a sedan, his gun aimed at Zaroc.

Zaroc straightens. “You move fast, hunter.”

“Not as fast as you think, prey. I’ve been in this solar system for a while. My associates are the ones who followed you in my ship. Just to keep you on your toes, you understand. Keep up the pressure. Force you to make mistakes. And here we are.”

Zaroc crosses his arms over his chest. “Let her go, and you can have me.”

IruBex chuckles. “No, the time for deals is over. I get you, the Bululg get her. You’re slipping, Zaroc. You come here unarmed? I suppose your prey instincts told you that you had no chance. Predictable to the last. It was obvious that you couldn’t resist coming back for her. It’s the first time I’ve seen you care about anyone else, Prince. And you care a lot for this alien, enough to offer your life for hers. Of course, you couldn’t let her go. She means too much. Indeed, she has a hold on you. She makes you weak. Two alien freaks with affection for each other. Yes, it fits. It fits.”

I try to move my arms, but I’m still not in control of my body. I can’t even roll over, and there’s a sharp little pebble digging into my spine.

“I don’t need weapons,” Zaroc says calmly. “I don’t think you really know where you are. Now drop your gun, and I’ll let you live.”

There are movements in the dark around us.

“I know exactly where I am,” IruBex says. “What do you mean?”

“I mean that our hosts will object to any harm coming to Averie or to me.”

As one, two hundred warrior monks lift the screens off their torches, forming a ring of flickering light around us. Light and solemn faces, one big eye in the middle of each, standing on the rocks, Bululg guns held securely in tiny hands. Beyond, the Bululg themselves are strewn lifelessly on the ground.

“Then