Page 14 of Wrapped in Their Arms

“I’m with you,”Brightagreed, but his tone was tense and his normally smiling face was tight.

“Good—fuckers won’t know what hit them.”Burn’svoice was a low snarl, vibrating with deadly intent.

Noelle stared at the two huge warriors.Bothof them held sleek silver pistols—Kindredblasters, she'd heard them called—lethal weapons that emitted deadly beams of burning light.Brightheld his with careful precision, his stance steady but controlled.Burnlooked like a loaded cannon about to go off, his big body thrumming with rage.

Her stomach clenched and cold washed over her.Shecouldn’t see what was happening—their broad shoulders and towering frames blocked her view.Shefelt helpless, small, and completely out of her depth.

Dios mío…who’s coming for us?CanBurnandBrightreally stop them?

The screeching rose to a fever pitch and then?—

“Watch out—the fuckers are coming in!”Burnbarked.

He crouched lower, andBrightdid the same, taking up defensive stances with expert fluidity.Andjust like that, the view opened up between them.

Noelle looked—she couldn’t help herself.Asterrifying as it was,notknowing what was coming felt even worse.Butthe moment her gaze landed on the thing coming through the hole in the hull, her stomach dropped and a sick wave of nausea rolled over her.

The creature was huge—even bigger thanBurn.Ithad leathery gray skin like dried clay and it wore long, tattered black robes that billowed like smoke.Aheavy, dull silver helm covered its head, leaving only the bottom part of its face exposed.

The visible mouth was a grotesque horror—a gaping, lipless grin filled with long, finger-length teeth, stained with dark grime that oozed between its blackened gums.

Its mouth opened, and itsmiledat her.

Madre deDios…whatisthat thing?

The sight rooted her to the spot, terror blooming in her chest like a thousand icy needles.Shewanted to run…scream…vomit.Butshe couldn’t do any of that—she was frozen in place—so scared she could barely even breathe as she stared at the thing that looked like a demon out of a nightmare.

“Get the fuck out of our ship!”Burngrowled and fired.

A beam of searing green light blasted from the muzzle of his blaster andNoellesaw it was a direct hit, right in the center of the demon-thing’s chest.

But the deadly blast did nothing.

The light bent—literallybounced—off the creature’s chest, angling away and slicing into the wall behind it with a hiss of melting metal.

“What the—?”Burnsnarled and shot again.Thistime, the ray came dangerously close, slicing only a few inches over all their heads before cracking the viewscreen.

“Wait!”Brightshouted, his voice sharp.“Don’tshoot again—Ithink it’s wearing a personal shielding device!”

Burn hesitated, blaster still aimed.

“What the fuck?Butthose things are almost impossible to get!”

“Well,Ithink theSkowhas got one,”Brightsnapped back.

As he spoke, the creature stepped fully into the room.

“Your companion is correct, warrior,” it rasped.Itsvoice was thin and creaking, like an old wooden door swinging open in a haunted house.“Iam wearing aPolydraxicReflectiveBarrier.Therefore, shooting at me is useless… and ultimately detrimental only to your own health and wellbeing.”

The thing—whatever it was—loomed over them.EvenBurn, who was a massive wall of muscle, looked almost small by comparison.

This can’t be happening…I’mdreaming.Orhallucinating.Oralready dead.Noelleclung to the edge of the seat, her knuckles white.

“Fuck the blaster then,”Burngrowled.

He launched himself at the demon thing like a missile, but before he could make contact, the creature raised a single hand.

An invisible blast of force exploded outward, slammingBurnbackward.Heflew through the air and hit the floor hard on his back, a dullthudechoing through the ship.