Page 47 of A Mate For Matrix
“It’s going to be alright,” he murmured into her hair. “As long as I have you—and K-Nine can corral those damn kittens—we’ll make it.”
Jana laughed softly, the sound muffled against his chest. It cracked through the grief like sunlight through storm clouds.
He felt the vibration before he heard the sound.
Incoming signal, his internal system alerted.
Vessel approaching. Trajectory: direct intercept. No IFF match.
Matrix stiffened. His arms tightened around Jana for a split second before he lifted his head, eyes narrowing.
K-Nine’s voice came through next, clipped and tense.
Matrix. We’ve got company.
Matrix’s jaw clenched. He met Jana’s gaze as she pulled back just enough to see his expression.
The grief was still there, but now it had something to stand beside it.
Purpose.
He gently shifted her off his lap, rising to his feet with a renewed clarity.
“I’ll handle it,” he said.
Jana rose beside him and reached for his hand. “We’ll handle it.”
And just like that, the future—whatever century it belonged to—didn’t feel quite so lost.
Matrix reached the bridge at a full sprint, dragging Jana behind him. The moment the doors hissed open, his eyes locked on K-Nine.
The massive wolfhound was stationed at the forward console, his metallic limbs tense, the cords of artificial and organic muscle beneath his plating coiled tight. His glowing eyes flicked to Matrix. A single nod.
“The cloaking shield?” Matrix asked.
“Operational. Barely. Thirty-eight percent. It was the best I could manag?—”
K-Nine’s voice cut off with a sharp metallic click.
Matrix connected—instinctive, fast—reaching across their shared link.
What are you?—
The moment their connection flared open, Matrix staggered.
A flood of static—no, not just sound, consciousness—surged through him like a wave of scorched ice. His breath caught in his throat. Something ancient, cold, and wrong pressed in from all directions—suffocating, sentient, and watching.
A low hiss escaped him.
K-Nine shuddered. His eyes pulsed erratically. He whimpered.
“Disengage,” Matrix snapped, his voice rough. “K-Nine—pull back!”
But K-Nine didn’t respond. His body trembled violently, his ears flattened, and his tail curled under him like a scolded pup. The mechanical plating across his flanks twitched as if caught in a storm no one else could feel.
“Shut it down!” Matrix barked. “Override: emergency disconnect—priority alpha 885623!”
K-Nine’s legs buckled.
