and Thane noticed that one of its arms was deformed. A battle injury? No. He could see that it looked like it had never formed right. The Kantos also had slashes across its face. Old scars that hadn’t healed well.
Thane glanced around the others.
One only had three legs. Another’s eyes were wrong, mutated. It only had two glowing, while the other two were empty sockets.
None of the Kantos moved.
“Screw this.” Kaira charged forward, her sword in hand.
A Kantos soldier met her sword with its sharp arm.
She yelled and whirled.
Another soldier rushed in and Thane swung his sword.
Even disfigured, these soldiers were dangerous.
Kaira leaped onto a rock. A Kantos charged her and she leaped. She sailed over its head, slashing with her sword. She reached Thane and they pressed their backs together, fighting off the soldiers.
More rushed in.
Stop.
The mental voice made the Kantos freeze.
Thane and Kaira did, too. He gripped his sword, ready for anything.
We mean you no harm.
The first Kantos, the one with only one arm, moved forward.
“You’re an elite,” Thane said.
I am Nisid.
It had a name? The only Kantos Thane knew that had a name was a defector. And while he might not be a part of the Kantos, he’d still been untrustworthy.
The elite stepped closer and Kaira whipped her sword up. “Don’t come any closer.”
I’ve never seen a Terran before. You’re smaller than I imagined. The Kantos elite met Thane’s gaze. Like I said, we are no danger to you. In fact, I believe we can help you.
Kaira made a choked sound.
We are rogues. We are not part of the Kantos horde.
Thane glanced at the others. A small soldier scuttled forward. It was smaller and thinner than the others. Another one had a twisted back.
We were not…created well. The Kantos council dumps us here on Crolla, hoping this planet will kill us off. We are discarded.
Thane pulled in a breath. Kaira’s sword lowered.
We hate the Kantos council as much as you. We just want a chance to live. In peace.
“The enemy of my enemy is my friend,” Kaira murmured.
A buzzing filled the air and a soldier moved closer to Nisid.
The elite met their gazes. Kantos patrols are close. We must get to a safer place.
Thane tensed. Cren. Should they trust this Kantos or not?
He glanced at Kaira and saw her face was serious. She gave him a tiny nod.
Thane inclined his head. “We’ll come with you. But if you betray us, I will kill you.”
Chapter Ten
They followed the Kantos soldiers.
Unease thrummed through Kaira. She didn’t trust them. This could be a trick.
Thane took her hand and squeezed.
“I don’t like this,” she said.
“Slyness isn’t in the Kantos vocabulary. They usually just charge in and overwhelm with their numbers.” He scanned the group. “They’re all disfigured in some way. I believe Nisid.”
The rocky ground grew worse. Ahead, a huge cliff wall loomed over them. Veins of glimmering, blue-green metal crisscrossed through the rock.
Nisid walked right to the wall… And disappeared.
Frowning, Kaira moved closer, and spotted an overlapping gap of rock.
Here goes nothing.
She slipped sideways through the gap.
Inside was a large, hollowed-out cavern. Stalactites and stalagmites in the same blue-green as the veins in the rock outside glowed throughout the space.
Hell, it was incredible.
Thane pressed right in behind her. Nisid settled in the center of the space. Several other Kantos soldiers moved out of the shadows. She saw one with melted skin, and horrible scarring from burns.
Swallowing, Kaira sat on a flat rock. Thane sat beside her.
“How long have you been on Crolla?” Thane asked.
Seven annual cycles. Nisid shifted. There are some who are older. We find those who are injured or imperfect. The discarded. The Kantos council wants the best soldiers for its armies. They want them whole. Any of us who are not born perfect are tossed here to die.
Just when Kaira thought the Kantos couldn’t get any worse.
“Kaira and I need to get a message to my people,” Thane said. “We want to get into the base to send it.”
Nisid’s pinprick eyes glowed. Getting into the base is a death sentence.
“We have to try,” Kaira said.
There might be a way. The rogue Kantos paused. We can help you.
Thane eyed the elite. “In return for what?”
In return, myself and my people want to leave this planet. We want a safe home where we aren’t hunted.
She looked at Thane. Jesus. This was crazy.
But it might be their only chance.
You’ve seen the one path to the base. It’s very difficult to get in. We’ve watched them for years.
“You can get us