Page 80 of Xefe
I staggered to my feet, keeping an eye on the Guardians. They were awe-inspiring. So beautiful and terrifying, they hurt my eyes. I leaned against the mountain, ready to start my trek, when a chill went down my spine. Someone, orsomething, was watching. Slowly, I looked up to the ledge, and I saw it. A creature even scarier than the Guardians.
Bigger than an elephant, it had deep purple scales and a cranberry plume. Eight legs, two sets of two in the back and front—each muscled limb tipped in razor-sharp claws. It looked like a dragon without wings, and it was staring down at me like I was its new favorite snack.
I hate my life.
It dove off the ledge, using the sides of the ravine to ping-pong from rock to rock. Before I made it a few steps, it was halfway down. I tried to run, but my body was broken. The Oro had repaired my lung, but it hadn’t been enough.
I searched around, desperate to find a portal,someplaceto hide. But I was too late. The alien-dragon landed behind me with a thump and took a swipe. I felt the power, and weight, of its claws. It didn’t penetrate the armor, but it lifted me off the ground and slammed me into the wall. I landed hard and watched as it leaped. On instinct, I rolled, and it took me into a crevasse under the rock. There was the smallest sliver of an opening, and I was able to ram myself into it.
The beast screamed and clawed; its talons grazed my arm. I couldn’t move one more inch to avoid it, but I was safe. For now. I shook from panic and watched it burrow into the dusty dirt. How long would it take before it dug a hole big enough to reach me?
I need Oro.But it was gone. The vial must have been knocked out of my hand when the beast slammed me into the rock. Icouldn’t see anything, was trapped and alone, with my body unable to repair itself.
Valentina. I’m sorry.I’d come so close to finding her. Or finding out if she was safe. Helplessness washed over me. Tears streamed down my face as the beast roared at the top of its lungs.
I had almost died so many times on this planet. I never imagined this ending. Alone. With no one to help me out of this mess, I’d run out of options. I’d been fighting so long… maybe it was time to rest.
CHAPTER 35
Xefe supervised theconstruction of the final games for the Great Race. The supreme had finally made his choice. It would end up beingEnRedo—an intricate and lethal maze, the deadliest of all the games. Everything about this event was dangerous. Starting with its location. To move the giant maze into place, Xefe had to lower the force fields. When that happened, the Guardians appeared, and this time, they arrived faster than ever before. As if they sensed the blood lust, the tension connected to this event. Xefe and his warriors had to rush the delivery before the tornadoes destroyed the arena.
Xefe watched the dome close, impossibly slow. He stood with several other warriors, including the supreme’s personal guard, a triad of deadly soldiers. There was little communication between him and these fighters, but they respected each other.
Poised for battle with staffs in hand, they all watched for danger. The Guardians weren’t the only worry. Brutoos—massive, scaled beasts with eight legs and razor-sharp claws—roamed this part of the planet. Winds buffeted them. The Guardians bombarded the shields, but the dome closed before they could do too much damage. Xefe heard the lone howl of a brutoo, signaling he’d found prey.
May it be a quick death.
The brutoo were relentless, cruel, and had been known to keep their prey alive forticsat a time, to ensure a fresh meal. Once the danger passed, Xefe accessed the control panel on his uniform. He had readouts on every being wearing a uniform. His daily checks had expanded to include the earthers. Theymay not have communication, but he could still monitor their whereabouts.
All were accounted for. Except Hermosa.
His body moved before his mind caught up. He palmed his staff and ran for the nearest portal, one that would bring him to the prisoner quarters. He accessed his communication device, and said, “Loxo? Nime? Do you have a visual on the earthers?”
“No, First. I am doing rounds in the lower quadrants.”
“No. Thank the stars. They are not on duty. They are in their quarters along with the other workers,” Nime said.
Xefe leaped and slid into the portal, which cut off communication temporarily. The portal ghosts, as he’d named them as a child, howled for him, tore at him, as if urging him on. It confirmed something must be wrong with Hermosa. She was connected to them, to this planet, because of the Oro inside her.
“First! Are you there? Has something happened to the earthers?” Loxo sounded frantic and on the verge of exploding.
“Loxo.Calm.That is an order.” Xefe ran across the bridge, seconds after the stone formed under his feet, and accessed the force field locking in the workers. “I am here now. I need you to join me. All of the earthers are accounted for except Hermosa. I am assessing the situation.”
Feelings bombarded him. So foreign and overwhelming—he hated being this out of control. He had to focus, or else he’d destroy anyone in his path—anyone who would take her from him.
The scene that greeted him was pandemonium. The majority of aliens, hundreds, were hissing and throwing rocks at the cluster of Verders. The earthers were screaming at the top of their lungs. Nheenya held a sobbing Querida, and Nieve was pacing and pointing at one of the Verders. “You better go in there and get her.”
“If you’re so worried about your friend, you go in.” One of the Verders replied.
“Nheenya, what’s in there? Should I go?” Nieve wrung her hands.
Tears welled in the eyes of the Tattats, the purple alien. “You mustnot. No one ever returns from there. It is not a two-way portal. If you go through, you cannot return.”
“What goes here?” Xefe came up on the Verder, the one who’d been fighting with Hermosa during the prequals. He lifted the green alien by the throat. “Tell me now before I break your neck.”
“Sunny!Gracias a Dios que estás aqui!That bitch, right there—” Nieve pointed at the Verder hanging from his hand—“beat Hermosa and made her go through there.” She sobbed and pointed at the portal.
An ancient gateway. Deadly. Unsurvivable. It led straight outside to the brutoo’s hunting grounds. The supreme had never bothered to block it because anyone who dared escape would either get eaten or taken apart by the Guardians.
