Page 159 of Pets in Space 10

Fire and Flight

Adele strained to see anything in the darkness. Without a moon, the ground was a black void. Lochan was focused on the controls, soft grunts and muttered profanity marking the voyage. In her lap, Rogue whined in protest. Relaxing her overly tight grip, she rubbed his ears. “Sorry.”

The stars on the horizon started to climb. No, the stars were not moving, it was the mountains blocking the sky. She started to ask Lochan where they would land and bit her lip. Distracting him would not be wise.

“Commander Lochan to Nightingale. Nearing beta site.”

Adele felt a shift in momentum, a sense of leaning forward. The flyer shuddered and rocked to a series of soft popping sounds.

“Propulsion failure. Going down! Adele, press the violet light on zero.”

“Violet—”

A narrow box surrounded her seat. A panel lit up in front of her, numbers counting down from ten. She was in the escape module. She recalled the safety briefing. When the countdown reached zero, she should press the violet light on the right of the panel.

Five Warriors protect me. Her finger hovered over the light. Three. Two. One. Zero.

The box separated down the front, the sides lifting into wings as the capsule converted into a glider and she started to fall.

***

Heart pounding, Lochan strained to locate the silver glimmer of an escape glider in the darkness.

The basic safety briefing for passengers was more a reassurance than useful training.

In most instances, if a flyer failed, there was little chance of survival.

At least Adele had paid attention and asked questions, fascinated by the concept of the escape glider.

Sending his glider in a wide arc, he spiraled toward the burning debris. There would be sufficient light from the flames to select a safe landing site. He could only hope Adele would have enough sense to come to that conclusion. A flicker to his left had him tightening his turn.

It was a glider, and it was dropping too fast. Shifting from a lazy spiral, Lochan dove his glider toward Adele. “Pull up. Too fast. Pull up!”

He was too far. She could not hear him. With a jerk, Adele’s glider leveled, and her descent slowed.

Relieved, he reduced his momentum, but continued his advance, able to make out her form hanging beneath the wings.

Her glider dipped, turning away from the fire, the broader spiral slowing her descent.

It was still too fast, but he could not catch her without risking a crash.

The best he could do was trail her, hoping to land close.

***

After several heart-stopping moments, Adele managed to arrest the glider’s free fall.

It was harder to steer than she had imagined.

Too wide an arc and she risked drifting too far from the flames to find them once she landed.

Too narrow, and the whistling sound from the wings warned her that she was dropping too fast. Hanging from Adele’s improvised belt, Rogue whined in distress.

“Shh. We are fine. We are being a bird.”

The dog quieted, probably reassured by her voice. “Good boy.”

She peered into the darkness, seeking another glider. Given how fast the flyer was falling when they jettisoned, Lochan could be miles away. She could only hope he would follow the flames. Is that water? The river?

The glider’s arc turned her back toward the fire.

The ground below seemed flat, and devoid of trees.

The glider was drifting back toward the fire.

Estimating the distance, she feared she would not clear the burning debris before the glider lost altitude.

Adjusting the wing angle, she sent it into a faster drop. “Hang on, Rogue!”

Over the rushing of the wind, she thought she heard her name, but it was all she could do to try control the descent.

The wings became unwieldy in the grip of gravity.

The ground rushed nearer. Bringing her feet forward, she could make out the toes of her boots dangling above a pebbled surface.

Dragging on his leash, she pulled Rogue close.

Five Warriors protect me. Her toes scraped and bounced.

She pressed the release and fell forward, managing to tuck around Rogue.

Her right hip hit the ground and then her shoulders. All the breath left her lungs.

***

“Adele!” The wind tore the word from Lochan. If she heard him, there was no sign. Her glider continued to drop. “Adele!”

A dark shadow separated from the glider, the wings tumbling downwind while she hit the ground in an awkward roll.

Maneuvering as close as he dared, he released the glider and, in a breath, was up from his roll.

Racing across the pebbled shore he caught movement in her still form.

As he closed, he realized it was the little dog, nuzzling at her face.

Her mouth was open, but no sound emerged.

The fall had knocked the wind out of her.

Before she could panic, Lochan pushed the dog aside and lifted her arms over her head. She gasped and then breathed in a shuddering breath, then another. She blinked. “Not what I expected.”

“What was not?”

“The glider.” She lowered her arms and pushed up to sit. “It was much harder to steer than I imagined.”

Troll guts. Is she in shock? Head trauma? In the dim light, with the obscuring headgear, it was difficult to assess her condition. “Are you injured?”

She rolled her shoulders and flexed her feet. “These rocks will have left bruises everywhere.”

The rounded stones ranged in size from marbles to eggs to the size of his fist. She could have broken bones, but she would know and seemed far more concerned with the dog.

Rogue crawled into her lap, gazing at her expectantly.

She ran her hands over him and gently pressed on his bandaged leg. “Are you well, little guy?”

The dog huffed and pulled his leg away from her hand.

“A bit sore? Well, it could be worse.”

If she is in shock, she might not know she is injured. Ignoring the dog, Lochan asked, “Can you stand?”

“I think so.”

Leaping to his feet, he held out his hands. For a moment she sat there and, as he began to worry, she placed her hands in his. Relieved by the warmth in her fingers, he pulled her to her feet. Upright, she seemed steady. He asked her again. “Any injuries?”

“Only the bruises.”

“Headache?”

“No. Why?”

Relief flooded through him, making him lightheaded. Without thinking, he pulled her into his arms, delighting in her sturdy weight, and vibrant warmth. “I thought I had lost you.”

With a soft moan, she wrapped her arms around his waist, pressing closer. The hard shell of her head gear rubbed against his chin. He felt her chuckle.

She leaned back. “I would kiss you, but this headgear is a problem.”

***

Adele felt the deep rumble of Lochan’s laughter against her chest. His fingers brushed her chin, and the headgear dropped to the ground.

His helmet followed and then his lips were against hers—warm, and firm, and a bit dry from the wind.

Closing her eyes, she fell into the sensual pleasure of his mouth on hers, his solid frame against her.

Her blood raced with desire and excitement.

From the first, she had found him attractive, but never more so than in the last few periods.

His tongue teased at her lips, begging admission.

With a sigh, she opened for him, relishing the passionate contact.

With each stroke and tease, a pleasant ache developed in her breasts and between her thighs.

Hard little paws dug at her knees, pulling her from the sensuous trance.

With a sigh, she retreated from the kiss.

His eyes were dark, fathomless pools, the shadowed planes of his face hinting at confusion.

She ran her thumb over his chin, the rough velvet of his beard setting off little tingles of desire.

“As much as I would like to continue, Rogue is right. This is not the best time or place.”

Even in the darkness, Lochan’s chagrin was palpable. “We need to make our way to the flyer and locate shelter nearby. That is where the Nightingale will seek us.”

Stepping back, she became aware of a pull at her waist. No wonder Rogue was so impatient. With half his leash wrapped around her waist, he could not move from her side. “I need a minute to detach Rogue.”

Working the haphazard knot, she tried to make out their surroundings. “Are we near the river? I thought I saw water.”

“It is an inland lake. The source of the river.” Lochan bent to retrieve their helmets.

“This pebble beach continues inland another fifteen or twenty paces. After that there are fifty to a hundred paces of dunes and then woods to the south.” He pointed to the blaze northwest of them.

“The grassy area is widest where the flyer went down and the woods are sparse, giving way to the base of the mountains.”

His gaze turned south, scanning the darkness.

“What do you seek?”

“Our gliders. They have emergency kits.”

She followed his gaze, seeking any glimmer of brightness. “If we keep our backs to the fire, our night vision should improve. The light on my utility tool has a searchlight setting that will reach four or five paces.”

“It is not safe. There are predators in these woods, and I managed to lose my pistol while in glider flight. The fire will keep them away. We can return when it is light.”

Turning back toward the downed flyer, he grasped her hand. “It is not more than a mile. We will keep to the beach as long as possible.”

Walking on the uneven and shifting surface was not easy. She was glad of his steady hand. “Would not the dunes be faster?”

“But more dangerous. Even predators make sound on the pebbles.”

This new planet was far more hazardous than she could have imagined. And it was not only the animals. “Who were those attackers? Where did they come from?”

Lochan’s grip tightened on her fingers. “Despoilers.”