Page 10 of Protected By the Alien Warmachine

“Are you sure that’s safe?”

No, of course not.I didn’t say that aloud. Scaring Paulo more wouldn’t help anything. “It’s the safest place down here, and Kal’va will know where to find us.”

“And that’s a good thing?” Jules said, though she was moving toward the crypt while she spoke.

“If he wanted to kill us, we’d be dead. He’s our only ally, and if we go wandering off, we’re as likely to run into Rush’s people as we are to meet him.”

I thought it made sense, and we had to go somewhere. The crypt was as defensible as anywhere we’d seen.

We lowered ourselves into the crypt, three humans alone in a place so old that our ancestors hadn’t even known writing when the Ancients built it. Potentially, they hadn’t even beenhuman.A shiver came over me as my boots hit the stone floor. Across the room from me, flanked by forbidding statues, was the giant door, and behind it, whatever secrets Kal’va had guarded for so long. Curiosity burned in me, urging me to just take a peek.

“Ahha.”Jules’s voice dragged me back, and I looked around to see her grinning at me from behind the bier. When she waggled her eyebrows at me, I realized what she’d found and glared.

“You knew about it. I don’t know why you’re acting like this is some big discovery?”

“Because you, young lady, need to be distracted,” my friend replied in a reasonable tone. “And because it’s fun to make you squirm.”

She lifted the shredded remains of my outfit, shaking out my top to look at the clean cuts Kal’va’s claws made. “Wow, impressive. What big claws your boyfriend has, Talia.”

“Give me that,” I snapped, grabbing it out of her hands as she laughed. Behind me, Paulo choked on a repressed laugh, and then we were all giggling on the edge of hysterics. “Fuck you, Jules, you’re just jealous.”

“Uh, noooo, your deadly alien warrior is so not my type,” she protested. “I prefer a partner who’ll leave me with clothes I can put back on, thank you very much. Plus, there’s the age gap…”

I punched her in the arm, refusing to dignify that with more of a response than that. The moment of levity passed, but the distraction had served its purpose. Even Paulo looked a little less stressed.

The problem with having a friend like Juliette, I decided, was that no matter how irritating she got, I couldn’t stay angry with her. It was more annoying than anything she did.

Kal’va’s bier was the best cover in the crypt, and sitting behind it, we’d be out of sight of anyone poking their head down. Anyone who put in even a tiny effort would find us, but it was the best defense we had, so we sat behind it, leaning on the cold dark stone, waiting.

“Do you have any food?” Paulo asked after what felt like hours, but according to my watch was only twenty-seven minutes. The question was enough to remind me how long it had been since breakfast, and my stomach rumbled.

“You had to mention that didn’t you?” Jules groaned, digging into her pockets, retrieving a flask and a couple of candy bars. “That’s all I’ve got.”

“More than me,” I admitted. “I’ve got nothing.”

“That’s okay, I’m offering not asking.” Paulo pulled a thermos out of his jacket pocket, followed by a couple of bricks of Food Substitute. Okay, yes, it has a proper name, but that’s whatwe all called the barely edible stuff the foodmaker could craft from any organic matter. At our surprised looks, he grinned. “Hey, look, I always have a couple of rations handy. You know, in case of emergency.”

I’d never been so glad of someone’s anxieties as in that second.

I noticedKal’va’s return first. Maybe it was a subtle sound he made, or maybe I saw him out of the corner of my eye. More likely, it was a consequence of the bond between us. At least, that’s what it felt like—a growing awareness of his presence, followed by the lightest of steps as he dropped into the crypt. It was impossible to imagine someone so large moving so quietly, yet somehow, he managed to sneak up on us.

The effect might have been spoiled by me leaping up and running to him. The others looked up with a start and Paulo even gave out a little panicked squeal as he saw our alien protector. I couldn’t blame him. Kal’va had changed, and stood before us in all his warlike glory. Long, muscular limbs, claws like daggers, jaw opening wider than any mouth should, ready to rend and tear his enemies. His blue skin had darkened to near-black, and the crystal spines protruding through it pulsed with energy.

No wonder Paulo was terrified at the sight of him. The odd thing was that I felt safe, and I leaped into his arms without hesitation. Jules started saying something, then cut herself off. I doubt I’d have paid attention to her words anyway, because I’d just noticed the scorched rips in Kal’va’s armored hide.

“What happened? Are you okay? What did you do?” The questions poured from me as I examined him more closely. It wasn’t just the burns, his skin was also covered in blood. Too much blood.

“Slow,” he said, voice slurring as he forced the word out of a face made for war. “Blood…not mine.”

I opened my mouth, drew a breath to speak, and fell silent as he placed a clawed finger over my lips.

“Wait.” The word was a command, not a request, and it hit hard. I froze in place, watching as he transformed. The change was quicker than I’d imagined, muscles rearranging, crystals withdrawing into his skin. His protruding muzzle with its deadly teeth withdrew, and his skin lightened. In seconds, he was back to himself as I’d seen him when he first woke up, aside from the injuries and the blood.

“Better. I can speak now.” His golden eyes glowed, locked onto mine, and a little gasp escaped my lips. The smile that twitched at his lips should have annoyed me, but it just made me want him more.

After he’d showered off the blood. And had those wounds tended. Andshowered off the blood.Yep, that was important enough to mention twice.

“What happened out there?” I grabbed some of my shredded clothes and started wiping the alien warrior down. “Are we safe?”

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