Page 36

M ira dug her fingernails into her palms as Covak worked the edges of her wound, trying to distract herself from the pain.

The antiseptic stung like hell, but there was no way she was going to cry out.

Her other arm stayed curled around Spot s damaged frame, refusing to let go even for treatment.

The little drakeen s sensors flickered weakly, his legs bent at angles that made her wince just looking at them.

Davis loomed beside the medical bed, his face tight with worry as he tracked Covak s every move.

Hold still, the Vorrtan medic said, applying the sealing agent. Just a flesh wound. Watch for infection, and you ll be fine.

She nodded, sneaking glances at Davis. He hadn t budged since they d stumbled into medbay, hadn t let anyone but Covak near her.

Across the room, Jex tended to Jesh s arm. The cyborg woman had taken a hit during the battle. She caught Mira s eye and gave a quick nod of solidarity.

Spot s circuits whined, his casing hot against her side. His sensors flashed erratically, each pulse weaker than the last. Something sparked beneath his armor, and he twitched hard against her arm.

Hey, hey, stay with me, she whispered, her voice cracking as his lights dimmed further. Not Spot as well. Not after everything.

Davis moved closer, those alien eyes narrowing. His main circuit board s fried. The neural link pushed his systems too far.

I can help with that, Jesh said, sliding off her bed despite Jex s disapproving mechanical sigh. She joined Davis, examining Spot with clinical precision. Pass me that micro-tool kit.

Davis grabbed it from Jex s tray without asking, his bigger fingers surprisingly nimble as he and Jesh popped open an access panel on Spot s underside.

What are you doing? Mira tightened her grip on Spot.

Saving him. There was no hesitation in Davis s voice. Trust me. Please.

She swallowed hard, then nodded and loosened her hold. Davis and Jesh worked together, their fingers dancing through damaged circuits, rerouting power through backup systems. Spot s whining faded, his sensors stabilizing to a dim but steady blue.

That ll hold until we can fix him properly, Davis said, wiping carbon smudges off his fingers. He s tough. He ll make it.

Spot chirped weakly, his sensors flashing blue-white-blue. He nudged against her hand.

Well, I ll be damned, Ryke said from the doorway as he strode in. That thing s bonded to you.

He s not a thing, she snapped, pulling Spot closer. He just doesn t want to be alone anymore.

Nobody argued. Rann slipped in behind Ryke, looking like he hadn t slept in days.

They re all over the comms, Rann reported. Setting up search grids for us.

Ship s locked down, Ryke added, but we ve got company on long-range. Bastards are persistent. He snorted, confidence etched in his stance. Not that they ll catch us. We ll be three systems away before they even figure out our exit vector.

Covak finished with Mira s wound and stepped back. Did anyone grab K ell in the shitstorm back there?

Davis s jaw clenched. Lost him in the firefight. Grabbed his research and ran while we were pinned down.

Mira s fingers froze on Spot s casing. What? But what happens to you now? The stabilization treatment?

Everyone looked at Davis.

He stood motionless. The transformation had completed what the first blast started.

His frame had bulked up, muscles packed tight beneath his skin.

He matched Ryke s height now, with the same predator stance.

His eyes locked on hers pupils slitted vertically, surrounded by gold rings nearly swallowing the blue. Alien eyes. Latharian eyes.

Her breath caught. Her pulse jumped.

I m fine, Davis said, his voice deeper than before. During the battle, when I was running to you- His gaze held hers. Everything just... settled. The pain stopped.

Jex moved to his console, scanning readings. Fascinating. Combat stress hormones might have triggered the final integration. Your cells have stabilized.

So that s it? Anson asked. Crisis over? No more transforming during firefights?

Davis shot him a look that would ve melted hull plating.

Not exactly, Jex said, straightening. I ve analyzed his genetic structure against the data I copied from K ell s lab. You all should hear this.

Mira pushed herself up, biting her lip as fresh skin pulled tight. Davis reached to help, but she shifted away. Spot pressed closer against her side.

The unknown DNA in Davis s makeup, Jex continued, shares structural commonalities with Ophiuchian genetic markers.

Jesh s head snapped up. That s impossible. Ophiuchians are from our universe, not this one.

Exactly, Jex replied. It suggests our universes connected before we knew about it.

Davis s pupils contracted to razor-thin slits. What the hell are you saying? Where did it come from?

I believe it was in your grandmother s lineage, Jex said. The M Suun didn t add alien DNA they just activated what was already there.

You re saying these Ophiuchians were on Earth before first contact? Covak scratched his beard. That s impossible.

Not necessarily, Jesh said, wincing as she shifted her injured arm. Our universes might have crossed paths throughout history. Small jumps that nobody recorded. And all it would need would be one Ophiuchian.

The medbay went dead silent.

So what am I now? Davis asked, a muscle jumping in his jaw.

Jex tilted his helmet. A human-Latharian-Ophiuchian hybrid. One of a kind in any universe. But stable.

And he s not going to drop dead or sprout tentacles? Ryke asked, crossing his arms.

The transformation appears stable, Jex said. But we ll need more tests to be sure.

Mira s fingers traced each dent and scrape on Spot s casing, mapping the battle damage.

Davis moved closer to the bed, eyes fixed on her. The others suddenly found equipment readings fascinating. A new scent hit her metallic and sharp, with hints of ozone and something wild.

Does this change things? he asked, voice low enough for her alone.

She studied his face. He d changed. The angles of his jaw were harder. Sharper. His brow was heavier. But he still had the same odd stubble pattern she remembered running her fingertips over, and the little scar on his temple.

She glanced at the doorway where he d blocked Covak. The way he d put himself between her and anything threatening. How the crew had shifted around his new physicality like planets adjusting to a stronger gravitational pull.

She reached for his hand, her fingers hovering just above his skin. His hand waited, palm up.

I don t know, she admitted. I need to think about all this.

His pupils narrowed. He gave a nod, and his hand dropped.

Spot chirped beside her, sensors brightening as his damaged legs stretched toward Davis. He tapped Davis s arm three times in quick succession.

Rest, Davis said, stepping back. We ll talk later.

Mira watched his back as he joined the others at Jex s console, her emotions tangled like bad wiring. The same hands that had just saved Spot belonged to someone, something she barely recognized. Yet he d still jumped to protect what mattered to her.

Spot s sensors flashed his question pattern: three blinks, pause, three blinks.

Her fingers tingled with memory fragments from the neural link. The scrapyard s cold darkness where she d found him. That first identification: Not-Enemy, Friend, Protect.

Abandoned. Recovered. Transformed. Given purpose again.

Just like Davis.

The thought lodged in her chest as she watched him across the room, taller and moving differently, yet still at the center of the crew that had already adjusted to his changes.

I don t know, buddy, she whispered, her eyes drifting between Davis and the medbay door. Between staying and running. But I need to decide. And soon.

* * *

She fucking hated feeling helpless.

The wound in Mira's side pulled as she eased herself down onto her bunk. She grimaced, peeling back the temporary dressing to examine Covak's patch job. The Vorrtan's work was neat as always, but the injury still throbbed with each heartbeat, a reminder of how close she'd come.

She traced the angry red line with her fingertips. Davis had insisted on carrying her back to her quarters despite her protests. She'd felt small in his arms, cradled against a chest that seemed broader than it had been just days ago.

That was the problem. Everything had changed so fast. He had changed so fast.

A soft mechanical chirp broke through her thoughts. Spot scuttled over to the bed, his movements jerky and uneven from the damage he'd sustained. Three of his legs were bent at awkward angles, and his sensors on the left-hand side flickered a little.

"You should be resting." She smiled as the little drakeen core ignored her, climbing with determination onto the bunk next to her.

Spot nudged her hand, his blue lights brightening slightly. He held something she hadn't noticed before a small metal stylus.

"What are you doing with that?" she asked, taking it from his grasp. It was Davis's; she'd seen it on his desk. The weight of it in her palm reminded her of their nights together. Before the lies.

Spot chirped again, the sound both insistent and comforting.

"Yeah, I know," she sighed, setting the stylus aside. "I need to figure this out."

She shifted positions, wincing as the movement pulled at her side. Spot settled beside her, his lights dimming to a soft blue glow.

She closed her eyes, exhaustion tugging at her limbs.

The events at K ell's lab replayed behind her eyelids the M'Suun ambush, the desperate battle, Davis moving with inhuman speed to reach her.

The memory of his face when he'd found her surrounded by enemies sent a shiver down her spine.

Those alien eyes burning with something primal, something possessive.

Was that protection or control? Where was the line?