Page 74 of Scars & Starlight
“Find a way to locate Tara. She’s on the planet, somewhere in the wild around the base. She couldn’t have gotten far. Try searching for heat signatures.”
“I’m on it,” Kael replies, nodding with determination.
“Let’s get my match back,” I whisper to myself, wishing I could traverse the distance between us in a blink of an eye.
It takesus only half a rotation to detain all of Korvann’s crew and soldiers. Many surrender eagerly, claiming they feared for their lives and waited for an opportunity to defect, an opportunity our arrival now offers. Surprisingly, not many lie, and weeding out the good from the bad doesn’t present a challenge.
I watch as my soldiers lead the more zealous of the general’s followers to The Sovereign’s brig. For the seventh time since we descended, I reach out to Kael.
“Any luck?”
The engineer shakes his head. “The heat signatures we investigated so far turned out to be Tyreni primates.”
I clench my eyes shut. “I’m going to investigate myself. Keep me updated.”
“Of course, Commander.”
I return to the prison, having been here earlier to grab the two pieces of refuse my match took care of. This time, I step inside the cell that shows signs of use, one of my hearts in my throat. Picturing my match confined here makes me want to scream. I had to stay far away from Korvann, knowing my mother would want a public execution and not have me handle it in this obscure part of the universe. Which I gladly would have.
Pushing aside my rage, I steady my breathing and focus my thoughts. Pulling down my visor, I ask for an analysis of the area. The cell’s keypad is highlighted first.
POWER OVERLOAD DETECTED. PROBABILITY OF COINCIDENCE: 11%.
So that’s how she got out of the cell. Sharing the military nanites with her was the best decision I’ve made in a while.
I step out of the cell and stop at the door where the two Avaren males were slumped not long ago. Readings indicated they were sedated using the maximum non-lethal setting of a nano exoskeleton suit. I’m amazed at my princess for taking down two soldiers on her own. Timing pointed at her escape being right after the lastlight meal, when personnel would be slower and less alert. Genius.
Where would she go from here?I ask my nanites once I’m outside of the holding area.
A map of the section appears before me, lines expanding into every direction, to every exit. Percentages for likelihood are displayed next to each path. The one with the highest probability has a medium length indoors, but the shortest length to the edge of the property. I agree with my nanites that it would be the most appealing choice for my match. I follow it to the exit,where my match’s fingerprints are highlighted on the door. This is it.
Once outside, I take in the fresh air, picturing her in this position almost a rotation ago. Would she have stopped to taste the freedom, or would she have made a mad dash for safety? Probably the latter.
I look at the ground, searching for imprints from smaller feet. Not many have trampled here since we arrived, seeing as it’s the far corner, so chances are I’ll find something. It doesn’t take long for my visor to highlight Tara’s footprints. They lead into a passage through the canyon, one of dozens that erosion has carved out over countless cycles. Insects skitter over the ground, their colonies overgrown since higher intelligent life has been all but eradicated from the planet. Reptiles chase after them, their heat signatures negligible enough that I can’t mistake them for a human like my love.
A beep and scrolling text warn me of a communication from Kael.
“Commander. There’s a cave not far from your current location, with a flickering heat signature possibly large enough to be a human.”
“Understood,” I reply, not wasting more words or time. I set off for the new pinpoint on my visor’s map, moving toward it at the limit of my speed.
The smell of woodsmoke alerts me to her location before I see her, poking at a small campfire with a stick, a look of desolate disgust on her beautiful face. Her plain clothes are rumpled and stained, the locations of the stains making me want to flay Korvann with a very small knife. She must have been so afraid.
I push away my anger and take a step forward, just as she jabs the burning wood so hard sparks fly.
“What did the fire do to you?” I ask her hoarsely.
Tara jumps to her feet, her eyes filling up with tears at the sight of me. Her lower lip shakes before she inhales to speak.
“Oh my god, you’re my hero. I thought I was going to have to kill and cook a bunch of geckos. They’re too cute.”
Before I can process her words, she flies into myarms, dissolving into sobs as my legs refuse to keep me up, shaky from relief, bringing us to the dusty ground. The way her small body fits against mine highlights just how incomplete I felt without her.
“You’re both alright?” I croak into her hair, holding her a bit too tightly, unable to let go.
Tara nods into my chest, still hiding her face. “We are now,” she whispers her reply, breaking my hearts.
“I’m never leaving your side again,” I threaten, mostly serious. “We’ll have to use the cleaning facilities in tandem.”
