Page 19 of Akur

She was feeling it all now, and it tore at him more than the fact he could feel his cells expiring.

When the ground beneath them trembled, he thought it was his failing body. Death was supposed to be quick. Not prolonged. This was more painful than the wounds themselves.

“Big guy, what are you doing?”

He was dimly aware the Hedgeruds were no longer attacking. He’d fallen; the threat was neutralized. There was no reason for them to charge, so they let the female kneel by his side, gripping him even as he fought to rise to his knees.

But the shaking didn’t stop.

The air itself seemed to vibrate, humming with energy that made his nefre pulse with insistence.

Heat.

The air was heating.

Something was about to happen. And it wasn’t the tremors of death reaching him.

That strange tech Tasqals possessed. They were using it again.

“Hold on!” With the last bit of his energy, he pulled the female against him, his body encompassing hers as the ground gave way beneath them. But instead of falling, they were enveloped in heat that was searing.

It could be his imagination. His vision was still barely there. That didn’t stop his stomach from lurching as reality bent around them. For a moment, they were everywhere and nowhere at once.

Then darkness. Cool, damp air replaced the heat.

Dimly, he was aware of Kon-stahns. She wasn’t moving. And this darkness, this space…they weren’t in the heat of battle anymore.

Maybe he died. But wasn’t death supposed to feel…better?

Or maybe the entire world went silent because they had no chance now.

His body collapsed, the softness of the female beneath him cushioning his fall. She still wasn’t moving. He’d failed her.

Again.

But then he heard a sound. Felt slight movement.

Kon-stahns coughed, and it was the sweetest sound he’d ever heard.

“What…what just happened?”

5

Constance

The world came backin fragments, like shards of a broken mirror piecing themselves together. Each shard brought with it another sensation—the damp chill in the air, the weight pressing down on her chest, and the absolute darkness surrounding them.

Constance coughed, her lungs burning as she drew in stale, musty air. “What…what just happened?” Did she get knocked out? Where the hell were they?

No answer came. Only the echo of dripping water somewhere in the distance and her own ragged breathing. Those were the only two sounds that broke the silence. The weight on her chest didn’t move. Didn’t respond.

“Rebel guy?” Her voice cracked. The fog in her mind was lifting, replaced by a clarity that felt like ice water in her veins. “Big guy?”

Still nothing.

Reality crashed over her like a tidal wave. The battle. The gator-guards. The rebel’s blood spraying through the air. Her hands trembled as she pressed them against his shoulder, trying to shift his massive frame.

“Come on, you overgrown mint candy. Get up. We have to get out of here.” Heck, she didn’t even know his name. Never talked to him back on the Restitution base. Never really got close to him until that night when the entire camp…oh god, the entire camp was gone. And he…what was he doing here?

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