Page 46 of Rifted Hearts
Tasty little rat, working with our snake enemies. The phantom’s colors flashed with fury and a need for vengeance. An image popped into Remi’s brain, a glowing, elongated oval that pulsed with light.They used our own flesh to trap us here, tortured us with hunger, and stole our power to expand their lands. One by one, we were forced to eat our own kind to survive. Now we are free and will devour all of you.
Remi didn’t have the mental bandwidth to handle the confusing mix of images, emotions, and nonverbal information coming from the phantom. All he knew was that he was going to die soon, along with Zale, if he didn’t come up with a plan.He reached out a shaking hand toward the bubbles. They were widely spaced apart and his hands could pass through them easily. More emotions flashed across the phantom’s translucent skin—anticipation, triumph, and an aching hunger.
Remi transformed and darted inside the barrier. It was insanely difficult. His chinchilla side was now dominant, so part of his brain was screamingrun, stupid, runwhile another part was dodging tentacles that crackled with electrical energy. He found an exposed forearm and bit Zale as hard as he could.
The half kraken cursed then gazed up at the phantom and gulped. He pulled his knees up and launched himself through the bubble cage as the furious phantom flashed dismay and surprise and sent a bolt of electricity toward him. Zale flattened himself on the floor and the discharge hit Fable in the chest.
There was screaming and chaos, which made it an excellent time for Remi to listen to his rodent brain and run. He leaped forward then felt his body jerk to a halt.
The phantom had one tentacle wrapped around one of his hind legs. He could feel an electrical charge building in the viscous appendage that held him fast. Ozone hung in the air, and his thick fur stood on end as the phantom prepared to electrocute him.
Something else wrapped around his stomach, and he thought for a second that the phantom had coiled another jelly-like appendage around him, so he’d be twice as dead.
Then his body felt like it was being pulled apart in two different directions, an agonizing pain that ended with him flying through the air as Zale yanked him free with one of his own tentacles.
Remi transformed back, gasping, and the living leather crawled over him, covering up the angry red marks on his abdomen and chest.
“We need to get the fuck out of here.” Zale pulled him upright, and the two of them staggered toward the exit.
Remi couldn’t agree more. He forced his rubbery legs to work, and they bolted out the door moments before a second, more explosive bolt of electricity hit.
They broke into a run down the corridor. A light glowed ahead, and as they drew closer, Remi could see Mabel dragging Fable into the destroyed cubicle farm, holding a shroom torch in one hand. She stood over her twin, her facea mask of fury. She began shouting at Zale, as Remi knelt down beside Fable and put two fingers on the Pouch Twin’s neck, hoping desperately to feel a pulse.
“You did this! You killed him!” Mable shoved Zale out of the way and grabbed at Remi, her claws sliding off the reptilian armor he now wore.
Zale swung out two more tentacles and jerked Remi toward him.
Seriously, living leathers were the best. He would never make fun of Lyall’s fashion sense again.
“Try to touch him again, and I’ll cut you.” Zale held a knife in his hand the size of a machete, and Mable growled but held herself back.
A groan broke the building tension.
They all stared down at Fable, who was clearly not dead.
“This job sucks.” Fable tried to push himself up and failed. He reached up a hand, and his sister helped him up. Fable shook a massive, clawed fist in Remi’s face then swayed on his feet. “And it’s all that little brat’s fault.”
Remi needed to get away from the three of them and find Kaveh. Lyall and Kat weren’t here, and the phantoms wouldn’t be for much longer, since it sounded like something had already damaged whatever strange Riftworld tech had kept them captive. Everything was spiraling out of control, and he didn’t want Kaveh to catch him chatting with three Colony enforcers.
He opened his mouth to make some sort of argument that would convince them to let him leave, but before a word left his lips, Mabel slammed her fist into his abdomen, and his vision went black.
20
Kaveh swung off his panting, terrified, horse knowing he had no choice but to leave Ranger alone in what was now a hostile riftland during a major storm.
After Remi had charged off on Amanita, Kaveh had been forced to ride Ranger to the base. The bay gelding didn’t like the brutal pace Kaveh had set to catch up and stop Remi from whatever foolish heroics he was planning. His horse liked the worsening rift storm even less.
He stroked Ranger’s neck, petting him and telling the horse he would be back soon. The gelding had been trained to be ground tied, but leaving him and traveling on foot was a risk Kaveh had to take.
Remi would be at the base by now, facing down ratkind criminals and kidnappers at best and deadly phantoms at worst. It wasn’t like Remi turning into a chinchilla would help him if one of the floating invertebrates attacked.
Kaveh headed out into the spitting rain and unsettling energy of the storm, following the remains of a main roadthat had been built over twenty years ago to carry military equipment and personnel to the base. In his rush to cover the distance remaining on foot, Kaveh didn’t notice the telltale flickering blue lights before the swarm circled around him.
Strange and beautiful all at once, the mass of small, alien organisms shifted from an amorphous mass to an array of tesseract-like shapes.
Sparkleflies.
The Riftworld insects had given Kaida an early warning about the weakening of the restraints on the phantoms. He had never heard of them interacting with a drakone. They must have sought Kaveh out to give him crucial information, but he wasn’t sure he could communicate with them. The fact they had left the compound was odd enough, and he didn’t think their appearance in his path was an accident.
