its axis. Was it another earthquake, or was it me trying to process the fact that IGMC’s co-directors were somehow part of the torture that had altered my life forever? Time slowed after Chris had bragged about his involvement with the Ikma Scabmal Kama, and coldness had settled into my bones until I shivered. The rokhura ate Chris; my friends stood around and talked, but I was in a daze until Amity spilled out of the pod with Esra and made her shocking announcement. I was lucid enough to realize this news would affect my mate, and I cherished the opportunity to hold him in my arms.
When Raxthezana pulled away, I caressed his cheeks, wiping his tears away with my thumbs. I could imagine the relief and the sorrow he felt at having an answer to the senseless death that had haunted him since his childhood.
“Life is a puzzle,” I said, realizing I’d heard Mama say that all the time when I was a little girl.
“It is a puzzle and a prize,” he said and seized my hands to kiss them.
Tremors rippled, and I realized it was an earthquake.
Everyone dove to the ground as far away from the pod as they could get, and I curled into the fetal position.
Raxthezana held me, and we laid like that for an eternity, waiting for an end that wouldn’t come. My helmet was on the ground out of reach, so if VELMA had announcements for us, I was missing them. I heard the others shout, but I couldn’t make out the words. The shaking intensified, and I almost bit my tongue.
Surreal noises buffeted me: rolling thunder, floodwaters, explosions? The planet was going to break in half. We were going to float out into space. It was the end of the world.
And then it stopped.
Silence.
I gasped in a breath. I looked at my hands; were we still shaking?
Queasy, I closed my eyes and tried to ease my breathing.
“Is everyone okay?” Joan shouted.
A chorus of voices rose, one by one, and Amity even poked her head out of the hatch to say she and Diablo were fine.
“That was a doozy,” Esra said, brushing off her pants.
“What were those noises?” I asked. “I was terrified. It sounded like the apocalypse.”
“It’s hard to tell in the dark,” she said. “But there may have been some, uh, significant changes in the surrounding area. I’m grabbing my helmet to get an update from VELMA. I’d advise everyone to do the same. I’d be surprised if we didn’t get aftershocks from that one.”
Standing on shaky legs, I retrieved my helmet and handed Raxthezana his.
“Seismometers reported a 6.8 on the Richter scale,” Esra said.
Amity stuck her head out of the hatch again. “VELMA’s got graphs and charts going off the rails, guys. This doesn’t look good.”
“We will board our ships,” Raxthezana said. “The only safe place will be off the ground.”
“Agreed,” Naraxthel said. “I’ve sent a message to Hivelt, but he hasn’t replied.”
“Because I’m already here,” he groused via the comms. “And what do I find but a very pissed rokhura with its foot stuck in a spike pit and alien legs sticking out of its mouth? Not only did I have to rescue the ungrateful beast once, but then it stepped into the pit again during the quake! If it goes in a third time, I’m washing my blade of it.”
“Why aren’t you here yet?” Pattee asked, hands on her hips.
We stared toward the creek, but our helmet lights didn’t reach that far.
“Because once again, the creek has swollen past its banks. The last time I tried to jump it, I ended up in the Night River.”
“I’m glad, because I forgot to tell you about the tripwire,” Pattee said. There was a shout and a splash.
“Kathe!” He shouted.
Alarmed, I took a step.
“Hivelt?” Pattee called.
“That damned rokhura triggered the tripwire. It’s in the pit again.”
“Microtremors detected,” VELMA said. “Earthquake imminent. Seek shelter.”
Cowering on the ground again, I called out to Esra. “What are the chances we can get to the ships tonight?”
“We might get a break following this aftershock,” she said. “But it sounds like crossing the creek could be a problem.”
“It won’t be a problem,” Hivelt said. “I’ve just found a tree that fell across it.”
“We just have to make it through this one,” Joan said. “You’ve got this, CeCe!”
“Thank you,” I said through gritted teeth. The shaking wasn’t as bad this time, but when a streak of lightning lit up the sky, I saw a terror-scape all around us, glowing eyes, roiling black clouds, weird, disjointed shapes, and then it was black again.
“Did anyone else see that?” I asked, my voice panicked. A clap of thunder split the sky above, and torrential rain dropped like a heavy curtain.
“Numerous life signs detected at the perimeter of the glade suggesting wildlife approaches,” VELMA said. “Severe thunderstorm warning in effect. Tornado watch in effect. Microtremors present.”
“That’s it, guys,” Amity said. “I’m bringing Diablo out. I don’t want to be in this tin can when it tips.”
“A wise choice,” Pattee said.
The ground stopped, and I sat up, breathing heavy, but grateful for my helmet. The shel sent shockwaves of delight over my skin, and I realized they were enjoying the rain. Crazy little worm bastards. I felt a rush of affection for them, then shook my head at the idiocy of it. Then again … they were going to be with me for the rest of my life. Maybe I should name them? Nah.
Natheka waited at the pod’s hatch, and Amity hefted the dog into his arms.
“Let’s go now!” She called, and we ran toward the creek, following Hivelt’s voice.
Clambering over a rain-soaked tree trunk wasn’t the hardest thing I’d ever done, but the memory of all the glowing eyes and ominous cloud formations had me scrambling like a cricket.
Hivelt handed us down one by one, and we ran, sheets of rain plowing over us in waves as powerful winds threatened to blow us away.
VELMA’s alerts were a constant stream of beeps and alarms, and inlaid weather maps showed the path of the storm followed us to the ships.
Lightning flashed so often that it stayed light; we could see uprooted trees and great juts of land. Behind us, I thought I could hear the stampede of hooves and paws, silent roars and threats, and I ran faster, but Amity was falling behind.
“Get on my back!” I shouted and stopped long enough for her to hop on.
Rain speared us sideways, and lightning revealed tree limbs and other debris flying across our path at deadly speeds.
“Almost there!” Hivelt cried. “Through the trees!”
Another clap of thunder nearly brought me to my knees, but Amity held on tight, and then we broke through the trees. Hivelt’s ship beckoned, a gleaming black whale on land, its hatch open and waiting.
Bright light speared my eyes from my right, a lightning bolt hitting a tree, and when I looked toward the forest, I saw a tall ghostly figure disappear into the woods.
“What in the hell?” Amity said.
“Oh, thank God, you saw it, too,” I said and let her down. We jogged up the ramp and everyone found a seat or just collapsed on the floor as the door closed on the nightmare outside.
Hivelt powered up his ship, and all the weather maps appeared on his monitors.
“Strap in,” he said. “I’m delivering hunters to their ships; we can’t afford to lose any other vehicles.”
If the weather conditions made flight difficult for Theraxl ships, Hivelt didn’t show it. We only noticed at each drop when the door opened, and rain and lightning lashed across the opening.
Hivelt took Raxthezana and I last, and I hugged Pattee before giving Hivelt a fist bump and disembarking.
Thunder boomed, and we raced across the meadow to Raxthezana’s ship. We had to wait a minute for the hatch to slide open, and then we were in, and I stopped short, seeing the med bay as if for the first time.
Raxthezana put his arms around my front, and I sank into him.
“We are together,” he said.
“We are.”
More alarms sounded, and we rushed to the pilot chairs.
“It took a rotik for the door to open,” I said while Raxthezana flipped levers and pressed buttons.
“Ik,” he said and glanced at me with a raised brow.
“When we got to Hivelt’s ship, the door was already open,” I said.
He frowned and paused, hand hovering over a lever. Looked at me.
“You are correct.”
“Amity and I saw someone run into the trees,” I said. “But we’re all accounted for, right?
He pursed his lips, and I knew he was doing the same thing I had done, mentally tracking each person and placing them where we’d seen them last.
“Natheka and Amity carried Diablo into their ship,” I said. “Naraxthel and Esra joined them in case they needed help.”
“Pattee and Hivelt,” he said. “Joan and Raxkarax.”
“How do I call BoKama?” I said.
He pointed to the comms panel and showed me what to push. “Her new title is Ikthekama Scabmal,” he reminded me with a smile. “I shall have to find a new pet name for you instead of Ikthekama Raxthel.”
I gave him a small nod but listened for the signal to go through.
“Raxthezana,” the new Queen answered. “Is everyone safe?”
“Everyone except those who threatened the humans,” he answered.
“Who threatened the heart mates?” she asked, and I didn’t correct her. Instead, I reached for Raxthezana’s hand and squeezed it.
“The Hostile Recovery Corps landed on Ikthe,” I said. “Comprised of six men, they all perished. Also, a man by the name of Chris Clemmins.”
“Ikthe will drink the blood of her enemies,” the Ikthekama said.
“Is the Ikma in the dungeon?” I asked.
“Yes,” she said. “My WarGuard escorted her there three zatiks ago.”
“And she’s still there?” I persisted.
“Of course,” she said. “The guard brought up her empty food tray rotiks ago.”
Focusing on the memory of what I saw, I shook my head. “No. You need to check. Go and see. We’ll wait.”
Raxthezana flew us above the clouds, and the view of the night sky took my breath away. Stars sparkling in the vast pitch of eternal night, it seemed like life would roll endlessly into infinity. Below, an immense gray quilt of flashing clouds lay atop Ikthe’s surface, whispering of tempests and pirate adventures below, and I couldn’t tear my eyes away.
“Behold,” he said, and nodded to port.
I looked out and could see the other ships. My heart swelled, thinking about my friends and their loves, and the incredible trials we had all overcome. And we were still alive!
“She is gone,” Ikthekama’s voice uttered with barely concealed rage. “How did you know?”
“I didn’t know for sure,” I said. “But Amity and I saw something strange just a while ago, a figure racing into the trees. But there’s lightning and rain and earthquakes, so it was hard to see.”
“But how?” she said.
“She may have stowed away on Hivelt’s ship,” Raxthezana said. “It is fortunate she stayed her hand from killing him.”
“Her madness escalated,” Ikthekama said. “She spoke always of fires. She insisted Ikthe and Ikshe would burn into ash.”
“Ikthe may yet,” Raxthezana said. “The upheaval has worsened. I have not spoken with the others, but mayhap you would allow us to return to Ikshe for a period of rest?”
“You will be welcomed as heroes with their consorts,” she said. “As for IGMC, they have not responded to my hails.”
“Thank you, Ikthekama,” Raxthezana replied. “We will let you know.”
“If you find her –” she said— “tell her … I loved her.” The transmission ended.
I found myself dashing a tear. I didn’t know the former BoKama. But she sounded genuine and caring. For a second, I wished she had been the one to find me. How things could have been different!
We flew until VELMA found a vast plain where we could all land, and after a brief gathering, retreated to the ships for the night.