Page 55 of Monstrous Baby
Blue ozone sparked to the east.
Axxol huffed again.:Got you, motherfucker.:
He didn’t charge in that direction or do anything that I could see or feel. But the alpha dropped off the grid. I didn’t have to ping the area to know his blip would be gone.
:I’m a medic,:the last remaining dynos said on the grid.:I can heal your injury.:
I hopped down off the dead TMS, favoring my wing again. I even let out a soft, ragged sound of pain. Though the only medic I’d ever let touch me was Snryx.
Using my good wing, I half-assed a couple of short flights toward the medic’s direction, dragging my bad wing for effect. A dark, shapeless hump rose up out of the shadows, spines at the ready, spread open like a porcupine to protect his back. I croaked out another pitiful sound, swaying slightly in the clearing. Drooping down over my feet like I was going to roost for the night.
The SPR didn’t move closer but two of his implements stretched out toward me. Long fuckers. Did Snryx’s stretch so far? More than three meters. I tried to estimate how long a surgical blade might be. Closer to four, I guessed.
A branch cracked off to my right. The SPX jerked his head around to face the threat.
I leapt into the air, snagged one of the implements in my talons, and then had the long tentacle wrapped around his own neck before he even knew what happened. I strained upward, beating my wings furiously, hauling him off balance. Head high, jaw tipped back, throat exposed for the kill.
Axxol crunched through his neck, and I suddenly shot upward, implement sliced free. Head popped off. I dropped the trophy and soared higher, pinging the area for a fresh overview of the battlefield.
Carnage covered our beach house’s lawn, littered with bloody chunks of torn up whales and drones. The two Pterons were tossing the last surviving Balaenoptera back and forth between them, taking turns slicing another wound into its long, soft sides. It listed like a damaged ship taking on water but still fought its way toward the house.
Even though Natalie wasn’t physically there any longer.
The house itself looked like a tornado had torn off most of the roof, demolishing walls and exposing the interior to pouring rain. An eerie blue glow beamed around the master bathroom, where Natalie had taken refuge. The alpha pilot stood in the center of the ring, still pinging planet side, but the rest of my squad were gone.:How’s he doing that?:
:He’s merging realities,:Axxol replied.:He’s physically holding the jump ring open on Earth, but everything inside the ring is also in another dimension.:
:Can you track the location?:
:No need. If we kill him, the jump will fail Natalie back to us.:
I started flying toward the house.:Why the fuck didn’t you say so earlier?:
:Survey,:Axxol barked out.:Do not attack. You can’t get him through the jump ring without risking an implosion that might hurt Natalie.:
Frustrated, I clacked my beak sharply but I followed orders, changing my flight pattern to record all the moving targets.:Then how do we kill him?:
:We don’t.:Axxol trotted through the jungle with surprising grace.:Shedoes.:
Natalie? How? I had no idea but he said it with such confidence that I didn’t doubt him.
I certainly didn’t doubt her.
24
NATALIE
The crisp white marble floor of our master bathroom shifted to sterile, shiny silver metal. In the center of the room sat a long table with a clear, glassy top. Its silver base flowed in elegant curves to meld seamlessly into the floor. I wasn’t sure if it was the same table I’d seen in the laboratory room before. It seemed longer, more like a conference than an exam table, but I couldn’t be sure.
Remembering Axxol in pain, bound to the table with blue arcs around his limbs, while the man removed his Sirian cells made me shudder. Eyes squeezed shut, I fought down a surge of panic. My heart thudded so hard I couldn’t hear anything else. Couldn’t feel anything.
Lost. I’m lost in the infinite expanse of space. Alone.
Kroktl will never be able to find me.
Pain cramped my biceps, bringing me back into my body. Lohr’s bite. The taste of his blood on my tongue. Earthy and metallic yet wholly unique, carrying a hint of his brilliant mind and extensive knowledge.
Centered, I concentrated on slowing my breathing and opened my eyes.
