Chapter 10
Chapter Ten
Lunar sensed the approaching aircraft before the others heard it. The sound was different from Milano's helicopters. Higher-pitched. Irregular. Familiar in the worst possible way.
As they turned into the canyon, the whine grew louder.
"Incoming aerial vehicle," Solar warned unnecessarily.
Lunar frowned.
Galaxy Alien Mail Order Brides.
“What do I do?” Poppy yelled.
"Get off the trail," Solar ordered. "Find cover."
Poppy quickly complied, slowing down and guiding the jeep behind a cluster of large boulders.
"That flight pattern seems familiar," Lunar told Solar.
A flickering light appeared over the ridge, wobbling in a flight pattern that defied common sense. The Galaxy Brides transport pod came into view, its hull patched with what appeared to be… Lunar frowned. He seemed to remember humans called it duct tape.
Their odds of survival had just plummeted.
"No," Solar groaned beside him. "Not them."
Lunar agreed with the Solarian.
"Who?" Dani asked.
"Bob, Gary, and Pudding," Lunar answered.
"Bob and Gary," Solar replied simultaneously.
The pod lurched toward the ground, landing struts deploying unevenly. Dust billowed as the engines sputtered and died. The hatch opened, and Gary's yellow face peered out with inappropriate cheerfulness.
"Hello! Yoo-hoo! We've come to rescue you!"
"They're going to get us all killed," Solar muttered as Gary and Bob awkwardly climbed out of the craft.
Lunar studied their poorly fitted skin-suits with distaste. They looked like unattractive Earth children with oversized heads. Their arrival complicated an already desperate situation.
Gary jumped in excitement, as if this were a friendly meeting and they weren't on the run from Earth mercenaries. "There you are!"
Lunar leaned up to touch Poppy's shoulder. She shivered but put her hand over his.
"You are safe," Lunar assured her, speaking so only she could hear him.
She gave a slight nod and squeezed his hand.
"We've been searching everywhere for you," Gary announced as he reached the jeep. "The extraction coordinates have been compromised. Milano has the entire area under surveillance." He stopped to count the occupants. "Oh dear. We weren't expecting so many of you."
"The extraction is still proceeding?" Solar asked.
"Of course," Bob interjected. "Just relocated. And accelerated. As in, right now. Our window is closing rapidly."
"Weren't there three of you?" Gary frowned, looking from Solar to Lunar.
"We can't find Eclipse," Rowan said, her voice tense with worry. “Can you track him?”
"Eclipse, that's right," Gary said vaguely.
"Ignore him. He bumped his foot.” Bob slapped Gary's mouth.
Lunar glanced at the pod. It was too small and damaged. "Your pod cannot accommodate all of us."
"Well, no," Gary admitted, fidgeting. "It's really only designed for three passengers plus pilot. Four if everyone breathes in shifts."
"Then it's useless to us," Rowan said. "We're not leaving anyone behind."
"Actually," Bob insisted. "Milano's forces are converging on this location as we speak. They might have detected our landing."
"What?" Poppy demanded. "You led them straight to us?"
"Not intentionally," Gary protested. "But our stealth systems are, shall we say, somewhat compromised by the emergency repairs."
"How long until they reach us?" Solar asked.
"Twenty Earth minutes, perhaps less," Bob replied. "They're mobilizing from multiple directions."
Lunar quickly considered their options. Milano was closing in. Galaxy Alien Mail Order Brides offered a limited escape. The damaged pod would be tracked easily. Then again, they weren't exactly stealth driving on the ground either.
"We need to split up," Lunar stated. "Increase survival probability through diversification of targets."
"Precisely what we were thinking," Gary exclaimed, too loudly. "Inverse targets."
"No," Rowan said immediately. "We stay together until we find Eclipse."
"The pod can transport the two of you to the new extraction coordinates,” Bob said, sounding very much like he'd decided this as their leader. "The humans can continue by ground as decoys."
"Eclipse can take care of himself," Lunar stated, though he knew the twilight-dweller's chances weren't good against Milano's weapons.
"The cabin I was telling you about is still the safest immediate option," Poppy insisted. "We should all go there and regroup."
"The others can continue to the cabin location in the Earth vehicle, where we can arrange secondary extraction once the heat is off," Bob persisted.
Lunar exchanged a glance with Solar. For once, they agreed. Splitting up was their best chance.
"Solar and Dani should go with them," Lunar said, surprising everyone. "Solar's energy signature is the most detectable, especially now as we face darkness. He is the most likely to draw Milano to all of us. And Dani requires medical attention that the extraction vessel can provide."
"What? No," Dani protested, turning to him with dismay. "My ankle is fine. We're not leaving you guys to face Milano alone."
"It's strategically sound," Solar said. "Milano developed specific countermeasures for our energy signatures. If Solar and I remain together, capture probability increases substantially."
A distant rumble interrupted them, followed by the thump of helicopter rotors.
"Decision time," Gary insisted nervously. "Milano's air support is incoming."
Solar decided for them. "Dani and I will go with you. Lunar, protect them." He nodded toward Rowan and Poppy. "We will search for Eclipse from the sky, and we will rendezvous at the secondary extraction point once it's secured."
"Wait," Dani began, but Solar had already moved, lifting her carefully from the jeep despite her protests. "We can't go into… We can't fly… I mean, up there?"
Solar carried her toward the pod. Dani's protests continued.
"You should drive now. Those helicopters will be on us in minutes," Gary stated, already hurrying back toward the pod.
Lunar watched as Solar carried Dani into the pod, surprised by the Solarian's gentleness. The light-dweller's attachment to the human had grown. It was a transformation that Lunar recognized within himself.
These Earth women were changing them.
Lunar moved closer to Poppy, his shadow essence automatically adjusting to shield her. The cool darkness of his form met her warmth, creating that strange harmony he'd come to crave.
"Don't drive," he told her, extending his shadow field partly around her.
The pod's engines whined to life, wobbling dangerously before accelerating away with Solar and Dani aboard.
Almost immediately, the Milano helicopter changed course, its searchlight fixing on the departing pod. The diversion had worked. Solar's distinctive energy signature had drawn their pursuit.
"Now we move," Lunar directed. "Quickly, while their attention is diverted."
Lunar positioned himself to provide the vehicle with maximum shadow coverage. With Solar gone, it was much easier. Poppy started the engine and accelerated.
"Will they be okay?" Rowan asked, worry evident in her voice as she watched the sky.
"Solar's energy will regenerate quickly in space," Lunar responded. "And Galaxy Brides, despite their flaws, have transported many species."
"And Eclipse?" Rowan pressed.
Lunar hesitated. He preferred precision, not false hope. Yet the human's distress affected him strangely.
"Eclipse is resourceful," he stated finally. "His twilight abilities let him adapt to both light and shadow. His diplomatic training would serve him well if captured."
As they drove deeper into the wilderness, Lunar maintained his protective field around the vehicle, absorbing light to reduce their visibility. Poppy's proximity created that familiar resonance in his energy. The connection between them grew stronger despite circumstances.
"How much further to the cabin?" he asked.
"Not far," Poppy replied. "The worst of the terrain is behind us."
Lunar noticed the subtle changes when she spoke to him. Her quickened heartbeat, her slightly elevated temperature. He experienced similar reactions, the star-patterns within his darkness realigning whenever they interacted.
This connection between them represented both vulnerability and unexpected strength. It had changed his mission.
Changed him.
As they continued toward the hidden cabin, Lunar faced a choice he'd never anticipated. Return to the shadow territories with intelligence about Earth's defenses? Or remain with the human whose energy had become intertwined with his own?
For the first time in his existence, the path forward wasn't clear.