Total pages in book: 137
Estimated words: 130081 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 650(@200wpm)___ 520(@250wpm)___ 434(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 130081 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 650(@200wpm)___ 520(@250wpm)___ 434(@300wpm)
Unfortunately, the rough motion dislodged one of the thin ocular films covering his eyes. Davrik made a muted grunt as it popped out of his right eye and fell to the floor.
He was hoping against hope that the Scourge officer hadn’t seen it, but when he looked up, the other male was staring right at him.
“Well, well,” he murmured, leveling his blaster at Davrik’s heart. “I thought you smelled a bit off. Drop that blaster right now.”
For a moment Davrik kept hold of his weapon which was aimed at the Scourge officer’s chest. But then the other male turned his own weapon on Lan’ara, whose purple eyes widened.
“Drop it or I shoot her—and the other one too, just for good measure,” he said coldly.
He would have to comply—there was nothing else he could do, Davrik realized. The Scourge clones all had their weapons leveled at him—he couldn’t fight them all off at once! Not without getting himself and probably Lan’ara and Madison killed as well.
Reluctantly, he dropped the blaster and it fell with a clatter to the metal floor. With a cruel grin, the Scourge officer named Krix kicked it away and it skittered out of reach, under the bars of the nearest empty cell.
“Come on, boys,” he remarked to the huge, emotionless clones. “It seems we have more than one prisoner to bring to the throne room. The AllFather will have a feast!”
Davrik felt his heart sink. Not only was their mission a failure, now he and Lan’ara were both the captives of the Scourge and there was no way of escape that he could see!
They were trapped with no way out.
SIXTY-ONE
NATE
“Warrior, wake! Your female is in danger! Wake—you must go to her at once!”
The warm, feminine voice roused Nate from the deepest slumber he’d ever experienced in his life. It felt like his consciousness was at the bottom of a long, dark well and someone was calling down to him from the top of it.
He tried to open his eyes to see who was calling him, but somehow his eyelids wouldn’t open. It felt like someone had tied lead weights to them and made them too heavy for him to even blink. His mouth wouldn’t work either—his lips were too tired to form any words.
“Who…what…?” he thought fuzzily.
“It is I—the Kindred Goddess. I am the one who placed you with Lan’ara in the first place. Now she is in danger—she is trapped on the Father Ship and you must go to her,” the feminine voice informed him.
“Lan’ara? She’s in danger?” Sudden alarm rushed through him and he made a convulsive effort to get up, only to find that his body barely even quivered. “I can’t move—why can’t I move?” he thought frantically.
“You were severely weakened by the Bonding you and Lan’ara engaged in,” the Goddess told him. “In a moment, I will give you the strength to go and rescue her, but first, listen to me.”
“All right—I’m listening!” Nate sent to the voice in his head. He didn’t question her words—her warm, tangible presence all around him filled him with certainty and urgency that she was real and he wasn’t going crazy.
“Talk to Commander Sylvania,” the Goddess instructed him. “She has been developing a new weapon—you will need it to defeat the AllFather and save your mate. Be sure you take it and accept any help you are offered in wielding it—you cannot do it alone.”
“Help? But who’s going to help me?” Nate demanded.
“That will be made clear in time. Now, rise and go to your mate!”
As the Goddess spoke these last words, strength and energy suddenly poured into Nate like an electrical current, making his entire body tingle. With a harsh gasp, his eyes popped open and he sat bolt upright in bed.
He moved so quickly that he barely avoided knocking heads with a blonde woman who was bending over him.
“Oh!” she gasped, taking a quick step backwards. “What in the name of the Goddess?”
“Sylvania!” Nate exclaimed—he was filled with urgency. “I have to talk to Commander Sylvania! Where is she?”
“I’m Commander Sylvania,” the woman said, staring at him. “We met just a little while ago when Lan’ara brought you to the Mother Ship. Don’t you remember?”
Focusing on her face, Nate saw she was right. He’d been so hyped up that he hadn’t even recognized her at first.
“Yes, I remember now,” he said. “Please, Commander—Lan’ara’s in danger!”
She gave him a worried look.
“Are you feeling her distress through your Bond?”
Nate concentrated a moment and realized that he did, indeed feel a muted kind of worry and anxiety coming from Lan’ara’s end of it. However, it was as though the emotions were being partially blocked—maybe by the barrier that the priest had predicted she would be able to form?
“I can feel that she’s upset,” he said to Commander Sylvania. “But that’s not how I know she’s in danger. This is going to sound crazy, but the Goddess—she spoke to me! She came to me and told me I had to go get my mate because she’s trapped on the Father Ship.” He paused, frowning. “Though how Lan’ara got over there, I have no idea.”