Ezarith asks. “We’ll be inoperative until we regenerate.”
The female glimpses at me quizzically. Much to my species’ shame, it’s a known fact Incarus are most vulnerable after they’ve shifted from their beast. The energy required to morph back into their nonbeast form is physically taxing. It is why Hellisa is so determined to find a cure that will strengthen us post-transformation. That way, our enemies will be unable to sneak up on us after battle and Captain Rovak cannot slaughter us for our horns.
Fury boils deep at my core. So many of my people have been murdered at the hands of his hunters. It’s why those imprisoned on the AoS are not entirely against being forced to find this so-called cure. I’m willing to do anything, not just to gain my freedom but to help my species as a whole. It’s a win-win situation…if I don’t fail, that is; then I’ll be terminated.
That’s not so much of a win for me.
“Nothing will happen so long as we’re able to contact the AoS,” I say, nodding to the timer on Ezarith’s wrist. It’s the device that tells us when we must report back to the AoS, and if we don’t, the device kills us. “Besides, Commander Leoric would rather kill us himself than allow the Enforcers to.”
It matters not that I was once Commander Leoric’s friend. We even trained in the military together. Now he’s my superior and the commander of the AoS, and I’m just a rat he wants to flush down the drain like all the other prisoners bound to his ship.
Varyx grunts in apparent agreement. “True. Commander Leoric seems to have personally volunteered to be the one to terminate Ezarith.”
Ezarith narrows his eyes at him. “Then I am afraid he will just have to get in line.” His smug grin returns. “Besides, he’ll be bitterly disappointed like all the others because I plan on staying alive a long while yet. I’ve got too many females to seduce.”
“Now isn’t the fucking time!” Kalach slams his fist above the console, narrowly avoiding the transmission panel. “Since I’m clearly the only one who’s about to tear shit up, I’ll shift. You just better fucking hope Commander Leoric will intervene, or I’ll kill you myself when I get back.”
I nod and make a silent vow to free him of whatever fate awaits him. His sacrifice will not go unnoticed, and I plan on ensuring my debt to him is paid as soon as possible.
“Now we’ve got that sorted, Varyx and I must check in,” Ezarith says, motioning to the timer on his wrist. Varyx replicates the gesture, his lips pressed into a grim line. “We’ll take our leave on the AoS and make sure Commander Leoric doesn’t know we’ve been”—he shoots a glance at Ella, and I stiffen my spine—“derailed.”
“Then go,” I order, “and I will cover you.”
Kalach stands from the chair. Streaks of molten liquid gleam underneath his bronze skin, the sharp, spidery lines growing hotter and more vibrant by the second.
“You get the female out of here,” he says.
When I cast a glance at Ella, I’m surprised to find her looking so bewildered. Did she think we’d just hand her over to the G.C. without a fight? She’s got much to learn about my world and how I treat those I have no intentions of ever releasing from my hold.
Varyx descends the ramp, followed by a saluting Ezarith. Not a moment later, Kalach stands at the top of the platform and gazes down at the barren surface below. With a deep sigh that rumbles into a roar, he jumps from the ramp and shifts in midair. His four enormous claw-tipped paws land on the ground with a shattering bang. His long, fiery tail whips back and forth as he advances on the enemy. Even in his crouched form, he’s taller than the female’s ship and easily lunges atop our enemy’s vessel. With the G.C. Enforcers now busy because of an Incarus beast tearing off their doors like the wings of an insect, I slide into the pilot chair and prepare for takeoff.
I’m so focused on getting the female out of here that I don’t see her unstrapping and approaching the slowly ascending ramp. She seizes the gun from the door and takes up aim through the entrance, shooting at the Enforcers who were either thrown off their ship by Kalach or translocated to the surface. Her familiarity with a gun surprises me a little. I did not think the female