Page 89 of Defying the Relic Hunter

Ethan held out his hand. “Let’s go.”

I took his hand.

Chapter Twenty-Four

There was a fleeting flash of black and we were standing in the war room. I exchanged a shocked look with Xenia.

She shrugged and eagerly studied the satellite scans of the Superstition Mountains on the display scanners.

Most of the other monitors held different views of the mountains and extensive maps of the hidden caverns. A big, black safe sat at the back of the room. My attention was drawn to a photo of a white worm with squirmy growths around its neck. Its funky eyestalks reminded me of a snail’s. I pointed at it. “What in the hell is that?”

“A Gorum,” Ethan stated.

Xenia spun around and the color drained from her face. “We’re facing a Gorum?”

“We are. Asmoday’s partner in crime is a Gorum outlaw by the name of Ceti,” Quinn replied.

I eyed the photo in horror. “You’re saying that creepy worm is the mastermind behind the attacks on us?”

“Yes. Ceti and Asmoday teamed up eight hundred years ago. They were searching for a lost Shebu sphere. They wanted to use its power to rule the galaxy. Asmoday managed to track it down, but before he could seize it, the Thunder God trapped him in the artifact,” Ethan informed us.

“And you know this how?”

Quinn interjected, “Qa’a.”

“Right. Cause when he ate Asmoday, he got all his knowledge,” I said in a slightly weary voice. Not only did I have to deal with ghosts and God knows what else, I now had another alien boogeyman to figure out how to kill.

“Ceti also hired the Bjarke mercenaries.” Ethan rubbed the back of his neck. “According to them, Ceti believes the Shebu sphere is hidden with Montezuma’s treasure.”

“He’s not going to be happy when he finds out it’s been destroyed.” I frowned. “Unless there’s another sphere.”

Quinn shook his head. “According to the Nabatean guardians only two spheres were brought to this world. The one at the Magic Kingdom and the one given to Montezuma.”

“We’ve also been tasked with capturing Ceti,” Ethan added.

Xenia threw up her hands in disbelief. “How do you plan on doing that? They can teleport like the Katanic and they are almost impossible to contain or kill.”

“Which is why, Raj, a Gorum prince, has been assigned to our treasure hunt.”

“Oh yay, more alien boogeymen.” I patted Ethan’s fine butt. “You sure know how to show a girl a good time.”

“We’ve got it under control,” Ethan assured me.

“That’s what the Captain of the Titanic thought too, and you know how that ended.”

Looking like she had a bad case of indigestion, Xenia asked, “Is Qa’a coming too?”

Quinn stroked her back. “Adan’s his agent.”

“Adan is a menace,” I exploded. “I’m not working with him.”

“It’s not up for debate,” the General snapped.

Where the hell had he come from? I matched his cold-eyed glare. “I’m not one of your warriors, so buzz off.”

The General went toe-to-toe with me. “Buzz off?”

“That’s what I said.”

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