“He volunteered. He’s got Hive tech embedded in his brain. We knew you wouldn’t be willing to give us Commander Chloe Phan. We were hoping Braun would be able to predict the attack.” Ronan’s explanation seemed to make the commander even more upset.
“Last I heard, he had mating fever. Fucking I.C. Never know when to quit, do you?”
Ronan looked away from Karter’s accusing stare, and I returned my attention to the gigantic male leaning on two others for help. His uniform was shredded across his abdomen and thighs, blood oozing from his boots every time one of the soles hit the smooth floor.
Warlord Braun was nearly two feet taller then the Prillon duo carrying him. Eight and a half feet tall, at least, his face oddly out of proportion, his jaw too wide. I’d seen a few Atlan warriors guarding the perimeter of the Bride Processing Center, but they hadn’t looked like this. “What’s wrong with him?” I asked.
“He’s in beast mode,” Ronan answered.
Beast mode?
“It’s on you if he can’t come back.” Commander Karter swore and walked away from us, back in operational mode. I could see it now. A general. Someone used to being in charge. And whatever Ronan had done, somehow Karter blamed him for this Warlord’s injuries, and his beast mode.
“What happened here? Do the medics need help?”
“This ship was attacked by the Hive. About half of those who’d remained on board are dead, but there are survivors. They are being transported to other ships where ReGen pods can save them.”
“ReGen pods?”
“Curious, too?” Ronan grinned, but in a flash it was gone. “ReGeneration Podules. They can heal almost any wound, as long as the injured warrior arrives in time.”
In time? As in, not dead?
Grins, bare chests, and rippled abs were quickly forgotten. I’d transported into a triage area.
“We have to help,” I replied, seeing a guy who was bleeding from his arm. It seemed aliens bled red as well, a pool of it forming at his side. I dashed over, dropped to my knees and pressed the hem of the big shirt I wore against the wound. The person who was helping him looked at me, surprised. He was waving some kind of blue wand over the unconscious fighter.
“Take this, Lady Karter, continue to wave it over his torso.”
I frowned, not sure what the device was, or why he was calling me Lady anything, but I did as I was told, continuing to hold pressure. With no medical knowledge beyond what I’d seen on TV, I wanted to be of some help. When the injured man opened his eyes, looked to me, I leaned over him. Smiled. “You’re going to be just fine.”
“Lady Karter?” he murmured, the question gritted out in obvious pain, but even then, he seemed oddly pleased by his words.
“I’m Erica. You’re going to go on a little trip to a med center to get all healed up in one of those pod things.” I continued to wave the wand over him and squeezed his arm. “I just got here all the way from Earth. You don’t have to be afraid of the transport. If I can do it, you can.”
The tension left his face, if even just a little bit. Was he smiling at me?
“Twenty-seven minutes?” Karter asked.
“Affirmative, sir.”
The vibration and electrical sizzle happened again. I recognized it now as part of transport. Good, another injured warrior was off to get help.
“That’s her?”
I turned my head when I heard the new voice. I was the only her I could see and knew they were talking about me.
Another huge, caramel colored Prillon stood and stared at me. He, too, had on the black uniform, and he stood next to Commander Karter as if he owned the place.
Must be Karter’s mini-me.
Ronan he ignored completely, as if my second were invisible.
Why that bothered me, I couldn’t say, but something was going on between my mates, something they had yet to tell me. Unless all Prillon warriors just liked to argue with one another about what to do with a female. But that didn’t seem right, either. Not according to that amazing, sexy, perfect matching dream I’d had at the testing center. Those two males had seemed in perfect accord.
“You’ve been in touch with the Karter?”
“Yes, the shield upgrades have been activated, but we won’t know whether or not they’ll hold unless the Hive attack.”