Chapter 21 Hazel
Chapter twenty-one
Hazel
The link. He wants me to trigger the radiation net, but why? It's a last resort. There would be no need to use it unless... Unless there were ships surrounding Estreldez, but even then, Almder is adamant against the risk of high casualties on both sides.
We've discussed this. Even if the krelins invaded, we should fight in other ways first. The net was to protect against the virus.
"Faith!" I called out, not even processing that she never left my side as I stroked the scales on my mate's head. "Check the krelin they left behind."
She crinkled her nose in distaste. "Check it how? Like to see if he's still alive? He's definitely dead. Plus, I saw dad bit him. He wouldn't survive the poison."
"Look after your dad," I eased his head off my lap, and felt relief in the way his spikes along his scalp flexed as I stroked them. If he were dead, he told me that his body would grow stiff, even his scales and spikes would be unresponsive.
I moved to reach the dead krelin to confirm my suspicions.
There wouldn't be much time. Pulling off the arm guards, I watched has his flesh peeled off, sticking to the leather.
I struggled not to retch as I purposefully peeled more skin back to be absolutely certain.
The krelin didn't move, and we could be thankful that Yueril poisoned him, otherwise this would have been a deadly encounter.
I had no choice now as I saw the purple skin underneath the torn krelin flesh.
It made it here even with the Ganpan-Fal.
It's too soon. We need more time. The anti-virus nano tech takes time to replicate, and we gave most of cure to Krelis.
If we let it in now before the Ganpan-Fal can have more time on Estreldez. .. we'll all die.
Faith...
"I have to activate the link," I say quickly, finally getting up the strength to move from the shock. "Grab Loric and go to the bunker."
"But--"
"Now!"
"What about dad?"
"I've got him," I assure her as I grunt to roll him onto the thick blanket. "Why do the trill have to be so heavy. Your muscles are like rocks," I complain to stop myself from freezing in panic. I have to keep moving. "Go!"
Faith rushed off as I pulled Yueril across the floor with the blanket.
"Almder is going to murder us for this." I knew he'd say she wouldn't murder me or Faith, so I replied like he had.
"You are not allowed to use that as an excuse to stay in hibernation forever.
You've come back from worse. I don't want to hear that you never fully healed from your glands melting.
That's just how getting old works, you know that. "
It felt better to believe he could hear me, even if he couldn't. I had to believe he could so I could keep moving, keep pulling, keep trying.
Tears stung my loh as they steamed up from even a moment of thinking I'd lost him. "You are not allowed to leave me. You promised together, and if you're quitting now then that makes you a damned liar."
I knew that would make him angry. Angry was better than dead. He was a man of his word, and being called a liar was the worst insult I could say to him. Let that sink in and let that anger keep you here with me. Prove those words wrong, my rock, my love.
I made it out to the launch site, surrounded by a tarnpul pit, built to contain the explosion of sending the satellites into orbit. At the edge, I wedged Yueril into the safety zone and wraped him up in the blanket for added protection from activating the link.
Faith should be in the bunker by now, along with Loric.
I opened the control panel, and turned the crank that opened the programming slab.
It would be as simple as removing the safety chip.
The satellite will activate the initiation sequences as soon as it links up with the rest of the program.
Without this program in place, the whole network will activate, and the only way to stop it would be to destroy this one satellite, which will happen automatically as soon as the radiation field reaches its limits and burns up the very hardware that is controlling it.
Every single satellite will need to be repaired after this.
So many lives will be lost.
I whimpered.
"Who am I to play goddess, my love?"
My fingers hestitated to remove the hardware, when I saw a huge light explode from above, then a wave of wind blew through my hair, shaking my very bones as I held onto the satellite for support.
A shadow darkened the sky of the moon as too many battle ships blotted out the stars. They were destroying the net!
I pulled the hardware out and quickly cranked the heavy protective shield back in place then closed the control panel. My hand triggered the launch codes on the panel manually.
The satellite geared up and I prayed I wasn't too late. Did my hesitation mean the end of the estrelds and the krelins?
The vibration of the launch sequence under my toes as I pushed myself to run for the safety beyond the tarnpul platform.
I'm coming Yueril!
Wait for me, I pleaded as I felt the force of the launch blow me off my feet from behind.
My body flew through the air, as heat burned my loh faster than it could absorb it.
Fingers twitched as I reached out hoping I had made it far enough to be safe from the radiation net when it burned up the atmosphere above us.