Alex

ALEX

" A Gryn's mate, should be interesting."

Medius's last words to me as he told me what he intended doing with my proud gladiator.

"He will fight and die for you one last time in the dome. And I'll be rid of a problem forever."

And then he gave me "one last time" with Sylas, and my heart is shattered. The last thing I want in this galaxy is for him to suffer. And now he is.

If I hadn't gone and got myself stung by the stupid tentacle thing, we'd never have been in this position. We could have left our home, or we could have defended it. Sylas certainly wouldn't be at the mercy of the one creature who seems to know all about him.

I'm dragged down a dingy passage within the ground transport and thrust through a door into a room where there's a scent of antiseptic in the air. An Oykig medic is staring at charts on a screen.

"Put her in the clamp," the Oykig says, not looking up from what he's studying.

The Habosu push me towards a metal structure in the center. I struggle because I don't want to make this easy for our captors, but the Habosu is bigger and stronger than me, so I end up stretched out on the metal plate, various arms shifting into position as my wrists and ankles are snapped into cuffs and I'm stood upright, immobile.

"I'm Vasil," the Oykig says, "I'm going to be examining you," he says.

"And what if I say no?"

He lifts his head from his screen. Oykig don't have eyelids, so their stares are pretty intense.

"You don't get a choice," he eventually says.

"Then why even bother telling me what you're going to do? Why bother telling me I'm going to be taken anywhere?" I growl.

"This doesn't have to be difficult." He returns to his screen.

"Like it doesn't have to be difficult for Sylas? How do you think he's doing?"

"The Gryn is extremely healthy. The modifications made to him ensure he can continue to function even with half the health he has currently." He sets the screen to one side on a low table and presses a lighted button on a console next to it.

With a whirr, a set of unpleasant looking instruments fold out of the wall next to me.

"Oh, well, that's okay then. I'm sure he'll be fine, what with Medius teasing him and you prodding him. I'm sure he'll just bounce back."

Vasil approaches me, slithering across the floor.

"What do you mean? I've treated Gryn before, and he seems fine given the changes made to him."

Vasil knows more about Sylas, and given I'm going to make sure I get back to my gorgeous gladiator the first opportunity I get, I'm also going to make sure I take all the information with me. But first I need all of these idiots to think I'm not a threat.

Okay, significantly less of a threat than they already think I am. I need them to drop their guard, so I can get out of here.

"I mean like all predators, he's very good at hiding when he isn't well."

Vasil picks up a probe and activates something on the platform I'm strapped to which starts to shred my clothing. I need to talk fast because that thing is not going anywhere near me.

"Like if he's ill or in pain. He wouldn't let on. Or if he remembers more than you think he does…or if his enhancements are greater than you think they are," I suggest.

Vasil hisses softly, his eyes concentrated on the probe. "I would know."

"But would you?"

He lifts his head and there's an uncertainty in his gaze. "I admit, I have not worked with Sylas before. I only have the records from previous healers…"

"I don't know any of that. All I know is what he was in the dome. Which was undefeated." I stare off into the distance, past Vasil, and notice a screen on the wall which seems to be displaying human anatomy.

My stomach threatens to revolt.

"He was undefeated as a commander for the Gryn outpost the Zavaro wanted." Vasil looks at his screen again. "They believed it made him a perfect specimen for their experiments, but he was too strong." Vasil whispers out what could be a sigh. "Instead his memory was removed, and he was dumped here on Trefa." He wavers from side to side, snakelike. "Such a waste."

"And the other gladiators, the Gryn?" I ask, trying to keep my voice even.

"The other Gryn were not part of this." Vasil goes back to looking at the probe as the laser taking my dress reaches my thighs. "The others are from different places, all in the dome because the Gryn can fight like no other species, or at least that is my understanding."

"So, Sylas is the only captive of the Zavaro." I force my face into a pout.

Vasil's eyes snap back to me. "You ask a lot of questions," he says.

"You give a lot of answers," I retort, abandoning my plan to play dumb, not when I'm about to be completely exposed to this slimy reptilian alien. "I love Sylas. I love him with all my heart and soul. I want to be with him, protect him, let him nest for me, have his baby, so I'm going to ask questions, and if you let me get free for one second, I'll kill for him too."

Vasil puts the probe back in its slot, right next to a vicious looking item with three sharp prongs, flashing in the light. He stares at me for too long. Then he reaches for the device and leans into me.

"There is a resistance, against the Zavaro and against those in Tatatunga who support them. I'm going to release you. The transport will reach Tatatunga in ten nova-minutes. Get off and get help for your mate," he murmurs almost inaudibly.

The laser stops at mid-thigh.

"I can't leave Sylas."

"If what you've told me is true, he can look after himself. Medius is having him returned to the dome. There's going to be an event where he hopes Sylas will be finally destroyed and the information he holds goes with him."

"Like what? What does he know?"

"Only Medius and Sylas can answer that particular question, little female. I've given him as big a dose as I can of a memory enhancing serum. Medius wants to be sure he remembers before he has him destroyed, but if Sylas does remember, I can guarantee he should be able to use the information to his advantage because Medius would not go to all this trouble if it wasn't important to him."

Vasil leans down and flicks open the restraints at my ankles, and I slither to the floor.

"I don't understand. How?"

"Sylas is a great gladiator. He has friends in high places, even if he chooses not to acknowledge them." Vasil smiles to himself. "Like medics in the dome, perhaps? Anyway, he has more power than he knows. But you need to get to the resistance and get the help he needs."

"Like what?"

"They'll know. You can tell them I sent you."

My breath is coming thick and fast. All of this seems sudden, frightening, confusing. I crush all those feelings back down inside me. I survived Ixor, and I had nothing to survive for. I will survive this, for Sylas and our baby.

"How will I know who they are?"

"They will find you, little human." He sort of smiles, revealing two severely pointed front teeth.

"Tell Sylas I will come for him," I say as he opens a panel in the floor and I can see the ground passing by underneath.

"I don't have to. He will find you. No matter where you go or what you do, your mate will find you."

He'd damn well better find me.