Page 52 of Bound

“What do you think he will do?”

“There’s a risk of lockdown,” Maxym growls.

Klynn bristles, every feather on end. As if he doesn’t like being in the dome.

“Vrex! I need to get back to my mate. I can’t be locked in here,” I fire out. “But I have to get to the Loxzian first.”

“He’s in the hospitality suite,” Maxym says.

“Vrex it.”

“I know. I’d hoped they might take him on a tour, along with his reptilian friends, but as yet there’s been no movement.”

Outside the training arena, we hear voices. Klynn drops to the ground, concealing his swords, and clutches at his stomach.

“I’ll get rid of whoever it is,” Maxym says. “Go!”

I’m in the air before I even take a breath, climbing up until I get to the hidden ledge we discovered many nova-years ago. It runs around to a small opening only just big enough for a Gryn to squeeze through. I wait until I can hear voices (and the occasional dramatic groan from Klynn) and slide out of the arena into a stone passage which will lead me all the way to the dome itself.

The place is empty and silent. No gladiator likes an empty dome. Without the baying crowd, it is simply a killing ground. Even Klynn avoids it when it’s like this.

I scan the area, spotting the procurator’s hospitality suite is lit up, but there’s no movement inside. Then the great doors to the ante-chamber open up with a cracking sound which reverberates around the dome.

I look down, expecting to see the clerks making the place ready for the next games. But instead I see a number of Zarvu followed by the new procurator, the one the council appointed after the demise of the previous one, and a small group following on behind. He’s with the creature I’m seeking.

The Loxzian.

The assassin species is slim, covered in a silver fur which shifts like he can move to fit into spaces where no one should be able to fit. His long snout lifts as he attempts to scent past the stench of death.

His large, dark eyes miss nothing. The Loxzian senses are legendary, feared by any mark and well-regarded by any client. But their ability to fight is severely limited by their weak bodies.It makes them vulnerable out in the open although perfect as assassins.

The creatures following them send a shiver down my spine. It’s as if I recognize them, but at the same time, I do not know what they are. Like Maxym said, they’re like Oykig, only with greater facial horns and darker scales.

None of them are Fenek, although they appear to be the same species. And just when I’m attempting to work out whether or not that’s important, my name rings around the dome.

“Rych, Gladiator of the Gryn, show yourself,” the procurator’s voice bellows out. “Your presence is required.”

CHRISSIE

The library is truly amazing. It shows me that books are something which every culture, every species has generated throughout their various histories, even if they are not something I’ve come across in the present day.

Tech has overtaken the humble book, artificial intelligence taking over from common sense. Fenek’s reliance on bots rather than living creatures hardly served him well.

Or did it? I’m hopelessly confused and push all the horrible thoughts to the back of my mind as I browse the books on the shelves until my stomach growls and I remember Maxym saying there was somewhere I could find food.

I walk through the library, looking up into the ceiling which is covered in fading metallic stars. This place is like something from another world, another time, not here, not this galaxy and not mine. At the back, behind a large bookcase, I find another door which is set ajar. Inside is an incongruously Trefian kitchen, solid metal with a re-hydrator and plenty of packets of rations. There’s also a wide comfortable squashy couch. I unwrap a ration tray and heat it up.

As I stand in front of the appliance, watching for my food, I feel like I’m back at Fenek’s dwelling. I don’t want this. I don’tlike my life without Rych, even if it has been non-stop danger from moment one.

But I feel alive. I even feel like the virus is leaving me alone, as if time has been suspended while I’m in his arms.

I never thought I was someone who couldn’t cope with her own company, even if on Earth I spent most of my time at work, or with my dad, or out with my friends having fun. But now, I know. Being alone isn’t for me. Yet when I was sick, when I was not me, I isolated myself. I thought it was the only way.

It wasn’t.

The re-hydrator stops whirring, and the hum of the machine is replaced by another sound. The sound of footsteps, slow and even.

Not the steps of an excited Gryn. No rustle of feathers either. For a second, I freeze. Then I remember, I do not need to fear. Rych will come for me. I hop behind the couch. Hoping I don’t end up hiding from Maxym or Klynn. I’m pretty sure neither of them will not take well to being surprised by a female popping up like a jack-in-the-box, and I’d quite like to keep my head on my body.

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