Page 72 of Made For The Alien Warrior

Glass cracked.

Terror poured through his body. Slowly, his eyes lifted until he caught sight of the fracture in the dome.

Sim-pony whimpered. “They’re going to break through.”

“Hold it!” The Plutonian warrior shouted. Desperation coated his cry as he pushed his hands up, physically maintaining the dome with his shoulder.

Tiegan gripped the dagger in his side and fought to sit up. A surge of pain made him want to bowl over and fall into the grass. He could not. He must protect Sim-pony. He could not lie in the grass while her life hung in the balance.

Tiegan gritted his teeth and fought through the pain. Liquid sloshed in his head and his limbs felt heavy. The world tilted around him, blurring in a mix of colors and sensations.

He kept moving, inch by inch, until he was upright.

“What are you doing?” Sim-pony shrieked. “Tiegan, you’re about to pass out!”

“Get down,” the warrior hissed, flashing worried eyes on him.

Tiegan ignored them both and swallowed back the bile gushing in his throat. He felt sick, but he had to focus.

Breathe. Breathe. Do not focus on your feelings but on Sim-pony’s survival.

He raised his body until he was on his knees. Feet pressing into the ground and his head lolling forward listlessly, Tiegan nudged his shoulder against the top of the dome and held it steady.

The ontenta increased their pressure on the canopy, their buzzing so loud that it vibrated the ground at his feet.

“Shift over,” Sim-pony declared.

He exhaled, his chest heaving with the energy it took to remain conscious. “Sim…”

She did not wait for the rest of his scolding. Pushing forward, his stubborn Sim-pony pressed close beside him. Supporting him with her body, she nestled under his arm and pushed up.

The burden of remaining upright was no longer as treacherous. Not with Sim-pony acting as a pillar. Determination flamed in her eyes. It also snapped in his neural connector. Every tortured breath caused her chest to brush against his arms.

Sim-pony pursed her lips, pushing him up with all her strength. “Go away you stupid bugs.”

Tiegan’s lips twitched.

He saw the other Plutonian bite back a laugh.

“Sim-pony,” Tiegan croaked, fighting to push the words out of his weakening body. “Summon Sida.”

“Sida?” Sim-pony gasped.

Tiegan nodded. “The ontenta will follow it. It will lead them away from this point.”

“But what if I lose contact and she crashes somewhere?” Her eyes went wide.

Bang!

Tiegan jerked. Despite their best efforts, the ontenta were relentless. Theinsoswould not stop unless they had a distraction.

“Now, Sim-pony!”

She activated her comms, tapped the holo and flung her hair over her shoulder. “It’s done.”

Tiegan could no longer maintain an upright position and collapsed. His vision swam in and out of focus. His fingers dug into the earth as he struggled to maintain consciousness.

He could not give in to the pain when the ontenta were still raging. These unknown Plutonians had saved them, but their intentions were unclear. They’d arrived for thexelanplant. They could easily discard them after they’d achieved their goals.