Page 46 of Shielded Heart

Perhaps in his younger, more rash days, Arcanthus would’ve welcomed the challenge of facing such an opponent in hand-to-hand combat, would’ve thrilled at the opportunity to prove his martial prowess. He knew he’d made some foolish decisions as of late, knew that he’d taken irresponsible risks, but if there was one thing Arcanthus had learned over the years, it was that he had nothing to prove.

He pivoted Samantha’s auto-blaster, slipping his finger through the open trigger guard, and fired.

A burst of plasma bolts darted through the onigox and sizzled into the wall behind him. The orange alien glanced down at the holes in his chest, from which small tendrils of smoke curled, and grunted before crashing to the floor.

Arcanthus guided Samantha’s hand away from the auto-blaster’s grip and met her gaze. “Are you all right?”

Her lips parted, but no sound came out. She looked at the dead onigox, then swung her gaze to the dead aliens in the stairwell, before finally returning her eyes to Arcanthus. “I’m… I just… I’m…”

“Numb?”

She nodded.

“Let’s get you up.” Arcanthus took hold of her forearms as he rose, helping her to her feet. Her auto-blaster fell to hang from her shoulder by its strap. He slipped his tail around her waist again and kept hold of her arms; she seemed unsteady, and he feared she would fall if he let go. “Can you walk?”

Her tongue slipped out and wet her lips before she pressed them into a tight line. A little crease formed between her brows as they lowered. She nodded again, this time with more confidence.

Tentatively, Arcanthus released her arms. She wobbled for a moment before taking hold of her auto-blaster in both hands. The weapon seemed to help her reclaim her balance. Satisfied that she wouldn’t topple over, Arcanthus swung his remaining auto-blaster to his front and glanced up and down the hallway; there was no one else in sight.

He led Samantha toward the rear exit, which was the closer of the two. “We’re going to the rear doors. Kiloq, Koroq, how are you two holding up?”

“Stalemate,” Kiloq replied over the comms. “We’re outnumbered, and we’ll be exposed if we move.”

“Drakkal, what’s your situation?”

“We can make an opening to get into the car if we need to. That’s as good as it’s going to get,” said Drakkal.

Arcanthus nodded to himself. He’d hoped for a smoother rescue, but having come into this without a plan, he’d notexpectedan easy operation. All he wanted was for Samantha to be safe. Was that really too much to ask? Was the universe really that intent upon screwing with him?

You give me my mate and at the same time throw in a bonus mystery organization that wants to kill me. If I had known, I would’ve declined the two-for-one and just taken the female.

“Be ready to make that opening, Drak. I’m going to free up Kil and Kor, and you can swing around back and pick us up.” He glanced back at Samantha. “Almost there. Almost done.”

From down the hallway, there came a soft, high,familiartone.

“Kraasz ka’val,” Arcanthus muttered, borrowing Drakkal’s favorite Azheran oath as he looked past Sam.

The third member of the elevator crew stepped into the corridor near its far end. Arcanthus whipped around to face the lone alien, swinging Samantha behind him again. He raised his blaster and fired.

Plasma bolts darted down the hallway, hitting the walls, ceiling, and floor. Before any of the shots struck their intended target, the elevator crew’s sole survivor shouldered a large weapon. The weapon flashed and roared, and a rocket—trailing smoke and fire—leapt out of its end.

Several of the bolts struck the alien a moment after his weapon fired; the falling body was obscured by the oncoming rocket’s trail.

Arcanthus flicked his gaze to either side; there were doors nearby, but they would all be locked, coded to the ID chips of their residents, and he couldn’t outrun a rocket. He did all he could; he wrapped his left arm around Samantha, tucking her against his body, let the auto-blaster fall away, and activated his already depleted hardlight shield.

He crouched over his terran and turned his face away.

The impact of the rocket against the shield blasted up his arm and into his entire body, rattling his bones. A deafening explosion filled the corridor. Arcanthus clutched Samantha, and she clung to him as a wave of heat swept over them, followed by a dust cloud and raining debris.

Chunks of concrete, metal, and other substances clattered onto Arc, much of it striking with as much force as the onigox’s punches. He gritted his teeth and held on. Samantha grunted and stiffened for an instant before her arms fell away, and her hold on him went limp.

In the ensuing silence, Arcanthus’s heartbeat rose in a rapid, panicked rhythm. He blinked away the dust and shifted Samantha in his arm. Her head lolled back. The dust made her face look even paler than before and lightened the color of her hair, heightening its contrast to the dark trail of blood dripping down from her hairline.

“Samantha,” he pleaded, shaking her gently.

She groaned andalmostlifted her head. Her fingers grasped his tail weakly, but she didn’t open her eyes.

A blow to the head. How fragile are terrans when it comes to this sort of injury?

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