Page 19 of Guardian’s Heart (Space Guardian’s Mate #1)

ZAAREK

I was the most miserable I could remember being in a long time. Bathed in Mmuhr'Rhong gore was not even the worst of it. No, the worst of it was, of course, Nova again. I had the situation under control until she decided to start shooting my blaster. Every newborn knew that you didn't blast Mmuhr'Rhongs, unless there was absolutely no other choice. Their bodies were fragile enough to take them out with a few hard blows. It was the reason why they normally didn't attack like this.

Not her. No. I couldn't fully fault her for that either. She was an alien to this world, which only reignited my irritation with her for not trusting me.

If I were a betting male, I would have put credits down that it had been Nova's scent that had driven them mad like this—something I could understand. If that was the case, we needed to be gone from here as soon as possible. More had come out of their hiding spots when we started running, and they would alert their brethren. I wouldn't be surprised if a hundred or more weren't already converging on us.

"What in the Netherworld is going on here?" Nock shouted from the stairway.

He didn't look good. He was shriveled to half his previous size from lack of sleep—Kreds needed an obscene amount of time to sleep otherwise they could shrivel away to nothingness. But that wasn't my problem.

"Get the humans, and let's go."

Nock yawned loudly, and a black hole opened in his face from his mouth. "We need time to pack, we—"

"—are going to fight an army of Mmuhr'Rhongs if you don't get moving," I interrupted him.

That got him moving. He didn't utter another peep as he turned in the direction he came from, yelling for the humans. At least someone around here had some brains. Speaking off, I flicked a large chunk of brain matter off Nova's shoulder.

"I need a shower," she complained. Looking, for the first time, not as defiant, allowing her misery to shine through. My chest swelled with compassion for her. Every fiber of my being yearned to make her comfortable. She looked adorable when she wasn't feisty. I had been mad at her for shooting my blaster, but damn if her doing so hadn't gotten my blood flowing. Before she had been bathed in Mmuhr'Rhong, she had looked decidedly hot. I liked the idea of her being able to hold her own.

For a moment, I contemplated letting her go and wash up while I dealt with the Mmuhr'Rhong, but I didn't trust them not to try and sneak in from all sides. There was a reason this planet preferred oval houses—it made it close to impossible for the Mmuhr'Rhong to climb. Close, not impossible. I would not risk her life just to make her more comfortable. There was no telling how many of the creatures were assembling right now and/or already on their way. Despite how easy it was to kill them, if a pack of them attacked us, they could overpower us by sheer number.

I was just about to shout back upstairs when I heard the sound of footsteps. Nock hadn't wasted any time. The humans were mostly half naked, dressed only in what they had slept in. He hadn't even given them time to put on shoes. I might have to reevaluate my assessment of him. He did seem to be smarter than I had initially thought.

"By the eternal starlight, who shot a Mmuhr'Rhong?" Nock mumbled when they made their way over to us, and my estimation of him grew another notch. I wasn't one to rat another person out, but I did send a meaningful sideways glare in Nova's direction.

"Fine! It was me, alright?" She raised her arms in surrender, shaking her head exasperatedly. "I didn't know." She glared right back at me.

"Let's go," I ordered, not wanting to waste any more time.

"Hold on." Nova held her hand out.

"What?"

She wiggled her fingers. "Gimme me a weapon."

I sighed deeply; she was right. At this point, it didn't matter any longer; just glancing at her gave me an idea of how bad I had to be looking, covered head to toe in gore. I handed her one of my blasters, and after Nock held his hand out in expectation, I handed him a knife. The other humans huddled behind us, mumbling quietly to themselves. A female cried softly. I probably should have assured them that everything would be alright, but I wasn't the assuring type, so I muttered, "Stay together," and opened the door.

I checked the surroundings first before I waved the others on. The night had turned quiet. Suspiciously so. Normally, there would be yelling, laughter, and the sounds of empty alcohol containers being thrown against a wall, but there was nothing. It was as if the entire town was holding its breath, causing every hair that wasn't weighted down by gore on my head and neck to stand up.

"When I say run, you will run, understood?" I demanded of my group.

"I don't understand why—" Nova shut up at a sharp hiss from me. Her face told me that she did so only under protest.

The alley Nova and I came from appeared empty, but all my instincts warned me of a trap.

"Back, back inside," I urged.

We would take the back exit.

The owner stood in the dining hall, wringing his hands. "What evil have you brought upon me, Space Guardian?"

"The same evil that lurks in your shadows all the time, proprietor. It's not me who allows them to dwell in this town. Where is the back exit?" I leveled my blaster for emphasis.

He pointed behind him while he rushed to the entrance to barricade the door. He followed us to the other exit, and I was sure he would barricade that one, too, locking us out for good.

The alleyway behind his establishment looked just as dark and foreboding as the other had, but it didn't smell of a trap. Yet. Mmuhr'Rhongs weren't very smart, so it was entirely possible that—

"Look out," Nova cried, firing off the blaster simultaneously. Automatically, I looked up and had barely time to close my eyes as gore rained down on me.

A woman shrieked as another Mmuhr'Rhong jumped off one of the oval houses. I supposed they had figured out how to overcome that obstacle. They had laid a perfect trap, making me rethink of my assessment just moments ago.

"Run!" I yelled, pointing at the next house while shooting the Mmuhr'Rhongs lurking at the edges.

I didn't have time to admire Nova as she shot one foe down after another. Whoever had taught her how to shoot had done a formidable job. Together, we took several of the nightmarish monsters down while Nock bravely wielded his knife, putting himself in front of his charges. A small light by his ear indicated he was streaming. I was too amused to be annoyed and hoped he would make a few credits from this. He deserved it.

I grabbed Nova's hand and pulled her toward the others with me.

"I'm perfectly able to run by myself," she scorned, shaking her hand free, and despite being mad at her, her rejection stung. Part of me wanted to lift her into my arms and run, carrying her to the ship. Only the thought of the others and my ingrained sense of responsibility stopped me from doing so.

"Fine, that way." I pointed forward and to my right. To the rest of the group, I commanded, "Stay right behind us."

We made it three houses further before a group of Mmuhr'Rhongs rushed us from the right. Nova had already opened fire when I instructed Nock to take the humans forward to the next house and wait there.