Soul of Eon (Eon Warriors #8) - Anna Hackett Page 0,15
ran a hand over his hair. “Heal up, Thane. I need you.”
Thane woke, feeling his helian’s warmth and a sense of healing. He had no pain.
He instantly remembered the stone alien hitting him. There was a lot of pain then.
He shifted. His head was resting on Kaira’s thigh. He smelled her, sensed her, like a piece of himself.
Quickly, he shut that down. She didn’t want him, or what he had to offer.
“Thank God, you’re awake. Are you all right?” she asked.
He blinked and looked around. It looked like they were in the hollow of a tree.
“Yes.” He sat up, pressed a hand to his ribs.
It appeared everything was healing up nicely. He looked around. “You fought the alien, then dragged me in here?”
“You’re really heavy, by the way.”
He stared at her. Tough and incredible. These Terrans constantly amazed him. “Eon warriors have a dense muscle mass.” He grabbed her hand. “Thank you.”
She nodded. “I didn’t have to fight the alien. It’s linked to the ruins. Once I stepped off the stones, it lost interest and turned back into the architecture.” She handed him the water. He noted that it was almost empty and took a small sip.
“So, we avoid any other ruins we see,” he said.
“An excellent idea.” Frowning, she rubbed her shoulder.
“You all right?”
“Just an itch. My armor repaired itself, at least. Are you ready to keep moving?”
“Yes.”
Together they rose and stepped out of the tree. He heard the scuttling noises of small creatures in the bushes.
He hoped they were native animals, and not the Kantos.
They moved through the vegetation. Some snake-like reptiles dripped from the trees like hoses, but they mostly ignored them.
“This feels too easy.” Kaira shoved a vine aside.
Thane agreed, his gut tight. He felt like something was coming. Something bad.
He shook his head and morphed his sword. “The vegetation is getting thicker.” He slashed it apart for them.
Movement ahead. They both froze.
Small, furry, and nimble creatures ran up a tree, chittering and looking at them.
“Hey, little guys,” Kaira called. “I visited my grandmother’s hometown in India once. There were a whole bunch of monkeys at this temple I visited. They remind me of these guys. Cheeky.”
One creature leaped onto Kaira. Thane tensed, but as the animal pulled on her hair and stuck a finger in her ear, she laughed.
He slowly relaxed. They appeared safe, and by Eschar’s embrace, he loved the sound of her laugh.
“Look, the undergrowth is thinning out,” she said.
Thane put his sword away and together they pushed through.
They’d reached the end of the jungle patch. The valley spread out before them. It was covered in knee-length grass, and nothing like the rocky terrain they’d left on the other side of the jungle. He looked at the mountain range in the distance.
The cocoon base was easier to spot now, looking like a cancerous growth.
“Keep an eye out for a water source,” he said. “We need to replenish our supply.”
“What are the odds it’ll be drinkable?” she asked.
“There’s always a chance.”
They headed into the valley.
“You always an optimist?” she asked.
“As a doctor, I always hope I can heal my patients. I have to believe that.”
“As head of security, I always think about worst-case scenarios.” She shrugged. “And I’ve seen how life can snatch people away in the blink of an eye.”
Thane’s gut hardened. “You still grieve. For your husband and father.”
“Grief never goes away; it just gets duller. Less acute.” Her smile was sad. “Life goes on.”
“And yet you won’t let yourself love again.”
She stiffened. “Some things aren’t worth the risk.” She glanced at him. “I’m sorry, I know mating is a big deal for you.”
He nodded. “It’s precious, but I understand your feelings, Kaira.”
“You’re a good man, Thane Kann-Eon.”
He felt a stirring in his gut and looked away. He had to fight back the mating fever. If he’d been in Medical on the Rengard, he could probably formulate something to help.
He knew Kaira wouldn’t feel the effects as strongly as he did. Those with a helian felt it first, and the most strongly, thanks to the symbiont amplifying the sensations. But as the mating fever grew, the effect would spill out onto her as well.
There was no way he’d accept her coming to him if it wasn’t her choice. Driven by her baser needs.
“Look,” Kaira said.
There was a quiet, fluttering sound. A huge flock of delicate, glowing insects with beautiful wings rose into the air. Thousands of them.
“Wow,” she said. “They look like Earth butterflies.”
The filmy pink wings glowed softly, and the small