“You are comfortable with your weapon?” he asked.
I pulled it from the holster, settled it into my grip. The cool metal was reassuring. Familiar. “Yes.”
“Good.” He knelt beside me. “While we only see one entrance, there is always another.”
“Yeah, and where are his friends? You said they always travel in threes.”
Kiel squinted over the rock, scanning the surroundings. “I believe they must be inside, just out of sight. But we will leave them be. The Hive would not have just one way to escape this place should there be an emergency or attack. We will find their second ingress and infiltrate from there.”
Fancy Hunter, fancy words? Ingress? But then, maybe that was just my NPU trying to speak Everian. Whatever. I nodded, then followed as he sneaked back the way we’d come, Marz and Rezzer falling in behind us. Rachel had returned to Base 3 and I hoped she was rounding up the troops. Rezzer and Marz were leaving a trail, deep groves in the ground behind us every few feet so they could follow us. Hopefully, reinforcements would arrive soon.
As a group, we moved quietly. We were so far off Base 3, deep into the planet’s cave and ravine system, that the standard communications weren’t working. That left us a party of four. No backup. At least not now.
I wondered just how many Hive were inside that cave.
Kiel crept around a boulder and we fell in behind him in single file, Rezz on my six, which was cool. Nothing was getting past the beast.
The air smelled dry, like the Arizona desert in July. But it wasn’t hot. I was comfortable in my armor, perhaps even a bit chilled with the faint light of the nearest star far from its zenith. I figured it was near dawn, or whatever they called it here. The light was weak and there was still the chill of night in the air.
It had been five hours since my mates had missed their check-in. Five hours which had sent the entire base into a frenzy. The news that warriors were going missing was a secret no longer. Governor Rone had everyone on lockdown, security doing room-to-room sweeps. But we knew the Hive weren’t there, knew the bad guys weren’t there. Krael was here, with my mates. I didn’t have to be an Everian to know that.
If anyone could find my mates inside the labyrinth of caves that had to be under the surface of this planet, it was Kiel. That was why, with ion pistol raised and ready, I was following him into hell.
We had to find them. Not just my mates, but all the missing warriors. We had to shut this place down, destroy it so the threat would be over. So there would be peace on the Colony. The alternative was unthinkable.
* * *
Kristin, Secret Hive Base, The Colony
The rock ledge where we lay sprawled on our bellies was no more than ten feet above the monsters. That’s what the Hive were to me now, monsters. Just staring at them scared the shit out of me.
We were deep inside the planet’s crust, the cavern we looked down upon was filled with activity. Two surgical stations were in the center, about thirty yards from our position, complete with lighting and a variety of computers and gadgets the likes of which I’d never seen. I did notice that nothing looked even remotely like anesthesia, which didn’t shock me, but made me even angrier than before. I felt nauseated from what they were going to do to the warriors. What they had done. Was this what it had been like for Hunt and Tyran before they’d managed to escape? The others, too? The warriors flanking me? Knowing they’d been through this kind of torture and survived, only to be returned to Hive control now, would destroy even the strongest, the bravest among them.
The area appeared to be a natural rock formation, a vast cave, a place where drug dealers liked to use on Earth. Below, we saw three Hive and two prisoners. Those prisoners were my mates, who both appeared to be unharmed, at least so far. My heart leapt at the recognition, but it wasn’t all happiness. I was close enough for my collar to sense them, to feel their emotions. They were hurt, I felt the edge of pain, but they hadn’t been tortured. I felt hatred and determination.
I watched as Tyran lifted his head, his gaze swinging across the room. He’d sensed me, but didn’t know where I was. My mind stilled, my own determination filling all of me. I couldn’t allow them to sense my fear, my worry. Now wasn’t the time. They needed to keep clear heads and if I was panicked, they would be, too.
Gripping my weapon, I looked to Kiel. Yes, I would take the others’ strength, buoy myself so the men felt it and that alone. Perhaps my strength would work for them. They weren’t free and they needed it for what was going to be done to them—
No. I wouldn’t think about that. Focus. I narrowed my eyes and studied the enemy. As my mates had to pay attention to what was going on around them, I had to keep my head. The collars could be our downfall but I wouldn’t let them. I studied the Hive in the cavern. Kiel had filled me in on the various types of units we might see as we’d been searching for the back entrance to their lair.