Page 142 of The Edge of Dawn

Tarak was there now, and he took down two in quick succession. The remaining warriors were shouting incoherently. They couldn’t see Dragek, but they’d seen three of their comrades fall in rapid succession under his hand.

They could certainly see Tarak.

Decked out in full nanite armor, his sword drawn, there was no mistaking him for anything other than a First Division warrior.

One of the warriors fired, sending a bolt of plasma streaking through the air.

It flew past Tarak’s head. He didn’t even flinch. In a heartbeat, he was up against the shooter, slicing through his arm, severing limb and hand—and gun—from the rest of his body.

Dragek was no stranger to violence, but even he could appreciate the efficient brutality of Tarak’s fighting style. Without missing a beat—before the warrior even had time to scream—Tarak impaled him through the neck, sending a vicious spray of blood into the air.

Another body fell.

Dragek made a low sound of admiration as he came up on another from behind, drawing one of his slender daggers and slamming it through armor, bone, and heart.

The Kordolian died instantly, just as his comrade screamed and ran through the portal.

One left.

Dragek threw his dagger, injecting it with the force of his ka’qui. It pierced the warrior’s visor, cracking it.

He was already dead before he hit the ground.

Tarak gestured toward the portal. “Go,” he shouted, running toward it.

Dragek’s eyes widened in shock. No. “But not you...”

He had his link to Jade. He didn’t know how or why, but he was sure he would come back to her. The bond between him and his sarien transcended everything.

He had to go back.

If he didn’t kill the ones that had gone through, everything would be lost.

But Tarak couldn’t go back in time. He was needed here. He was far too important in the grand scheme of things, whereas he, Dragek…

“What if the portal gets…”

Destroyed?

What if there’s no way back?

Tarak shouldn’t go.

He would be the one to go.

There was no other option.

“You stay the fuck away,” he shouted at Tarak. “Do not follow me.”

Then, he stepped into the darkness.

FORTY-SIX

One moment, she was with him, and he was wonderful: warm and sweet, indulging her presence, his aura filled with tenderness.

The next, he’d shuttered part of himself.

Oh, he was still there, and she clung to him as if he were the last man in the Universe. She didn’t really know why, but now more than ever, she felt a terrible sense of urgency, as if the Universe were about to be torn apart at its seams.

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