Chapter 57 #2
They ignored everyone, press and crowd and officials, that tried to stop them as they returned to their car. It was a bit more cramped this time, but everyone climbed inside and, once again, Alanna had them on the road to the airport while Peony called ahead to warn Carlos.
***
The Paris catacombs were legendary. Alanna didn’t know if Scarlet and Havali had already been touring them when they had been chased down, or if they had run there after being cornered out on the streets.
For their purposes, it didn’t really matter.
The anti-alien militia had taken complete control of one of the catacomb entrances. They had it under armed guard, day and night, while they tried to figure out a way to track Havali and Scarlet through the dark, unfamiliar tunnels.
Judging by the injuries some of them were sporting, it wasn’t going well.
Alanna, Peony, and Holly hung back a short distance as the guys moved to the top of the entrance.
It wasn’t the tourist entrance everyone usually used.
It looked to be a closed entrance, probably unused due to safety concerns, at the base of a bridge on the outskirts of Paris, on the far end of a natural park that didn’t appear to be heavily traveled.
Judging by the location, Alanna was pretty sure her friends had been chased here.
The guys stood at the top of the bridge that crossed over what appeared to have once been a riverbed, now dried up and filled with plant life.
They exchanged a single glance and, with a nod from Atem, all three stepped over the side.
Once again, Alanna couldn’t resist. She ran forward. Before she even hit the edge, she heard gunshots and frightened cries.
The three men they had landed on top of were already dead. Necks or bodies broken from being crushed by their weight. Four more already had their necks clawed out before the others even realized what had happened and had a chance to raise their weapons.
Atem, of course, was the most dangerous male down there, but Survii shouldn’t be underestimated. She bit her lip, watching as he leapt atop two men standing side-by-side, bringing them both down before they could shoot and ripping out their throats.
It was ghastly and violent and horrific.
And incredible.
That was her mate down there. Taking down an entire armed squad like they were children playing with plastic guns.
The humans had gathered their wits enough to shoot back, but they had chosen the absolute worst terrain to fight in.
the surrounding trees and greenery were all too easy for the domini males to jump into and disappear.
Then, a couple seconds later, they would come rushing back out and take down someone else before vanishing. Couldn’t shoot what you couldn’t see.
The entire thing was over in under a minute. Bodies and blood littered the ground. The guys came together, talked for a minute, then separated. Romival climbed up the side of the bridge while Atem and Survii ran into the tunnels.
“Good work,” Alanna praised as he lifted himself up.
Holly was immediately back by his side. Clinging to him like a barnacle. He didn’t seem to mind as he checked her over to make sure she was still okay.
“They are well armed, but not well trained,” he said. “Their combat skills are lacking.”
“O-o-o, burn,” Peony said, smirking as Romival pulled the comm from his pocket.
“Did you get it working?” Alanna asked as he turned so that Holly was holding him from behind – her face now buried against his spine.
“Almost,” he frowned, holding out his hand.
Peony put the little toolbelt they had bought on the way here into his palm.
They fell silent, letting him concentrate, as he tried to use non-Standard tools to fix advanced alien technology that had been burned in a fire. It was a test of skill, patience, and creativity.
All things that the greatest scholar on all of Turv had in abundance.
“I don’t think I can get the microphone to work,” he said, claws poking at the delicate inner wires and tech…
pieces… things. Alanna had no idea what she was looking at, but he certainly did as he forced his pinkie down to press the copper wire he had bought with the toolkit down into a part of the device, connecting two different areas.
He grinned as though he had accomplished something.
“Is it done?” Peony asked, looking between him and the comm.
“I can’t make it communicate, but I can get it to send a signal to the Stor. They’ll be receiving the homing beacon now.”
“And that will be enough to let them know we need the shuttle?” Alanna asked.
“After days of us missing? Knowing we were attacked? It will be enough.”
He kept his claws in place, making sure it was still sending a signal, even when the sound of claws on rocks announced the return of the others.
Havali ascended first, Scarlet on his back. They were both dusty and dirty – like they had been hiding out in underground tunnels for days. Havali’s arm was bound up in what appeared to be his shirt, protecting a wound of some kind.
But they were otherwise unharmed. Scarlet beamed when she caught sight of the other girls and rushed to hug them. But the happy reunion didn’t last long. The moment Scarlet stepped back and looked around, her face fell.
“Where’s Hattie and Tuvo? Has… Has no one found them yet?”
The other girls looked away, their faces falling. It was enough of an answer.
“They didn’t find their plane?” She asked, looking between them desperately. “How do you just lose a whole ass plane?!”
“They didn’t lose it,” Peony mumbled.
“It blew up,” Alanna finished.
Scarlet gasped, falling back like she had been physically struck.
Havali was there, steadying her with a dark expression on his face. They had all been holding it together by necessity up to this point. But now that they were back together again, the loss of two of them was that much harder to ignore.
Before they could say anything else, Romival drew their attention up to the sky. The shuttle was streaking down like it was on fire, rushing towards them so fast, it was almost alarming.
The eight of them moved out of the way, giving space for it to come down.
It was too big to land properly on the old, decrepit bridge.
Instead, it hovered over it, turning in the air so it was straddling the railing.
The door swept open. It was much too high for any of the females to actually reach without jumping.
Of course, it wasn’t a problem. Atem and Survii clasped arms, creating a step in the air that Romival helped them reach by picking them up. Holly first, then Scarlet, Peony, and Alanna brought up the rear.
The moment Alanna stepped into the familiar setting, the unease she had been carrying around for so long drained away. She let out a long breath as the guys lifted themselves up into the ship – an impressive display of arm and core strength.
Atem was the last one aboard and he gestured to the pilot. The door slid shut and, just like that, they were shooting into the sky.
Alanna turned, embracing Survii. Shaking. Suddenly struggling to hold it together. Now that the tension was leaving, so was the strength she needed to remain standing. She struggled against the need to collapse as Holly had already done.
“It’s okay,” Survii said, rubbing her back gently. “I have you. I always have you, vi Vitralai. Lose yourself if you need to.”
Alanna let out a stuttered breath. Relief flaring along with love and gratitude for just a second before the sorrow and fear and exhaustion crashed against her like a freight train. She let the emotions overpower her sense of reality, knowing she was safe to do so.
Survii was here. She was safe to break down.