lift. “Oh? I was not present at the chamber, since I had some…troublesome check-ins to deal with, so forgive me if I’m not entirely up to date.”
By the way he clenches his jaw, his pulse ticking, the warriors he interviewed during their check-ins were unsuccessful and uncooperative. It baffles me I was once this male’s friend, his brother-in-arms, and yet now that I’ve been demoted to the rank of convict, he’s been promoted to that of judge and executioner. He hadn’t expressed interest in working for the AoS back when I trained with him at the academy. Now he’s picking off his old crew one by one and shows not a flicker of remorse. It’s just a duty to him, like my duty was to protect Hellisa from adversaries. I wonder how a male such as Commander Leoric sleeps at night with so much blood on his hands. At least I wasn’t slaughtering my own species, only aliens who sought to make deals with Her Majesty.
“I’m on my way to Her Majesty to discuss the matter,” he resumes.
With my gaze still fixed ahead, waiting for the number to reach my destination, I tell him about the planet where I’d been shot while in my beast form, and yet I didn’t weaken upon transforming back. There’s a glint in his eyes when I talk about the cure. As harsh as the warrior’s become in his later years of service, nothing excites him more than the prospect of us no longer being vulnerable. It’s something we’ve longed for since the first Incarus rose from his fiery depths. But it’s only been recently, when Hellisa created the AoS, that there have been any glimmers of success.
The doors peel aside on the thirtieth floor, and Commander Leoric, pausing only briefly, nods at me.
“Good luck, brother. I hope for all our sakes you return with the cure and we can strengthen our forces and eradicate Rovak’s poachers once and for all.”
The hunters—the one enemy that unites our species in hatred and revenge. The only thing stronger than our ever-present lust. Once again I dip my head, admittedly surprised by the sincerity in his voice. Since I was brought to the AoS, he’s remained indifferent to my presence. Now I’m seeing the old Commander Leoric, the one I joined the military with so very long ago, and I cannot help but frown. The weight of our world rests on my shoulders now. I just hope Ella’s right and there’s more of the cure on her planet, or else we’re doomed.
Commander Leoric clears his throat as the doors open. “As you were.”
“Sir.”
I watch him slide through the doors and then continue my journey upward to the conference area. My brothers are already seated when I enter the spacious room. The twins sit at one side of the hexagonal table, with Varyx and Ezarith across from them. Xalen is the only warrior who stands with his back to the wall, one muddy boot slid up underneath him. He narrows his eyes and watches me claim the vacant seat to his right.
“Now that we’re all accounted for, how about we begin?” Raziel growls, crossing his arms over his bare, tattooed torso. “Well, that’s not quite true, now is it? We’re one warrior down.”
I turn to him with a derisive smirk. “What’s that, Raz? You’re volunteering to break Kalach out of the Galactic Prison? That’s very generous of you. I’m sure he’ll be delighted to receive your help.”
The warrior scowls, his features turning a similar shade as his long red hair. “On whose orders?”
“Hellisa’s. As team leader, she’s tasked me with retrieving more of the cure from planet Aurora. She wants to ensure the mineral found in the serum is not a fluke.”
“And is it?” Ezarith asks, his usual humor all but gone. The possible discovery of our cure is a serious subject, one which we all depend on.
“I don’t think it is. You saw how I transformed in the chamber.” I shrug and then lift my arms. “Do I look weakened to you?” When Ryzer opens his mouth, probably to say something derisive, I cast him a warning glare. “Shut your fucking mouth.”
He clamps his jaw shut.
Varyx clears his throat and turns to me. “So this could truly be our salvation?”
I nod. “I believe so, and until we know for sure, Hellisa has declared we are no longer Disgraced Ones. We now need a volunteer to infiltrate the humans’ compound to obtain more of the cure. Only by testing