Chapter 15

FIFTEEN

Lorna

I closed the door behind me as quietly as I could and stepped out onto the deserted streets.

Getting Whitten to sleep had been the hardest mission of my lifetime. He had paced the small room of our dwelling for what felt like hours before I couldn't take it anymore. I'd forced him onto the bed and sucked his cock. After riding him until I came too, he'd finally, blessedly fallen asleep. So, while the mission was hard, I did enjoy it. But it had to be done. He would not rest, and I knew he would massively disapprove of my plan.

I needed to know what was going on. Whitten did too, but he respected Mable's wishes. Also, his size made him much too hard to notice creeping around like I was now.

It wasn't that I didn't respect Mable's wishes. I just had a feeling there was more to what she was saying. She was keeping something from us, and I had to figure out what it was. I didn't suspect Mable or the Loppies of wrong doing. But they were a prideful species, and I worried they'd try to take on more than they could handle.

I crept through the streets. The flowers had dimmed to a barely-there glow, so most of the way I went by feel. I knew these streets. I'd been here for a month. I'd walked these streets every day. I'd visited every corner of this quaint village. I loved it. I loved every Loppie in here. And I refused to sit in my dwelling if they were threatened.

I made it to Mable's hut having only stumbled once or twice and running into a few walls.

When I saw that guards were outside her door, I ducked into a crevice in the wall. I went very still as the sound of a door opened. Voices reached me. I recognized the one as Nervy, Whitten's little friend. We had nicknames for most of the Loppies we knew well. And Nervy was… exceptionally Nervy right now. Even as his voice slurred a bit from all the brew he'd had tonight, his anxiety was unmistakable. I caught the tail end of his sentence. "—won't go away. Loppies are trapped."

"Loppies have all Loppies need," Mable snapped. "Loppies will not surface this cycle."

I peeked outside the crevice to see the guards around her shifting uncomfortably. Nervy's paws shook. "Loppies doors hold for now. For now . Loppies doors might not hold forever."

"Loppies endure." Mable wasn't budging.

"Beasty and No Fur?—"

"Beasty and No Fur will not know."

Nervy was trembling down to his bones. "Signal is blocked. Loppies cannot get help."

"Loppies save Beasty and No Fur. Loppies protect Beasty and No Fur."

Nervy looked down at the ground and seemed to collect himself. When he looked back at Maple, his expression was more set. Determined. "Loppies protect Beasty and No Fur. Loppies endure."

"Loppies endure," Mable repeated. "Xaberians will not get in. Xaberians will not touch Beasty and No Fur."

And just like that, I nearly threw up. My stomach protested. The bile rose in my throat, and my heart pounded against my rib cage. No, no this couldn't be. The Xaberians had found us here?

"Xaberians threaten Loppies for Beasty and No Fur. Loppies hold strong." Mable was talking to the guards now, and they stood in a small contingent, spears at the ready.

I was going to be sick as understanding dawned. The Xaberians were here. They wanted us, and the Loppies were standing firm. But I had seen the Xaberians. I knew who they were and what they could do. I'd seen the weapons they possessed. They would get in, and all those wonderful young Loppies who I'd made colorful crafts with could be hurt. Would likely be hurt. All to protect Whitten and me.

Nervy left Mable and retreated down the street to his own home. Mable gave some instructions to her guard before they dispersed, and she walked into her home. I walked back to my dwelling in a daze. All around me, Loppies slept in their homes, hoping they woke up tomorrow to good news. But the news would not be good. No one would be able to surface. Their lives would be at risk. I pictured the happy teeming streets full of terrible Xaberians. Bloody, dying Loppies. I stumbled over to a wall and vomited behind a dimly glowing flower.

I wiped my mouth with a shaky hand. No, no way. I could not let that happen. I had left the women behind when we'd escaped the bunker. I hadn't been able to save them, and I'd come to recognize that. But I could save the Loppies. I could keep them safe from harm. I could make sure Mable still reclined in her decorative seat at night. Spark could still eat his treats and caused mischief among his teachers. Nervy could still tinker with his experiments in his home with a new mate. Maybe have a little Loppie or two.

I had the power to do this. And I was going to do it, even if my skin crawled with fear.

When I returned to my dwelling, Whitten was still asleep. He hugged a pillow to his chest, and his tail hung off the bed. His tongue lolled out of his mouth, and every once in a while he'd twitch his legs like a dreaming cat. I hoped he was having amazing dreams of home. Of his brothers. He'd see them soon.

I couldn't risk Whitten. He deserved to be home with Queen and his family. I was an outsider. I'd be missed by Whitten and Whitten only. Would his family mourn me? Sure. But they would move on, and Whitten would too. He had to stay alive for his brothers and for Queen. I was the outlier here.

Nervy had said the signal was blocked, so Whitten wouldn't be able to call home to his brothers, which is what I wanted. I wouldn't think of risking them. Whitten had to let me go. I had a small amount of faith I'd see him again, but I was tired of the violence.

I leaned down and pressed a soft kiss to his furry ear. He flicked it forward, and his face went pinched for a second before he relaxed into sleep again. "I love you, my mate," I said softly. "Don't forget me."

I put on a pair of shoes that Loppies had cobbled for me and donned the oldest set of clothes I had. I pulled my hair back off my face. Went to the bathroom. I did all the things with a detached sense of calm.

And after one more lingering look at Whitten, I left the dwelling. As I drew closer to the large cavern where Whitten and I had first arrived, I noticed a door blocked the tunnel that hadn't been there before. During his pacing, Whitten had recalled hearing the sound of safety doors being deployed. And standing alone in front of the door was Nervy. He wore a belt that was too big for him, and he held a spear. He trembled from head to footpaw. On the other side of the door, I could hear movement. Words. The caustic language of Xaberians and the rattling armor of the Dayloes.

Nervy jerked at the sound of my footsteps, and his eyes went impossibly wide as he saw me. He stammered quickly with furtive glances at the door. "N-No Fur return to dwe-dwelling. Loppie insists. No Fu-fur must go back."

My voice came from out of body. I couldn't feel my hands. I'd gone numb. "Please open the door."

Nervy's jaw dropped. "N-no?—"

"Are they threatening to hurt you if you don't give them Whitten and me?"

Nervy's eyes went up. Down. To the side. "N-no."

I didn't believe him. "Tell me the truth. Loppies don't lie."

He rubbed his paw on his little nose. Sniffled. "Xaberians want Beasty and No Fur. Xaberians threaten all Loppies. But Loppies protect Beasty and No Fur?—"

"Open the door."

The spear rattled with his shivers. "Wh-Where is Beasty?"

"No Fur is handling this." I went to him. Crouched to his level. "Please, you have to understand. Loppies—" I placed a palm on his chest. "Loppies mean everything to me. Loppies mean everything to Beasty and No Fur. It's now No Fur's time to protect Loppies. I will go with them. I will protect Loppies." I tried to talk to him in his cadence so he understood how important this was. "I will sacrifice to protect Loppies." My throat clogged and I swallowed. "And to protect Beasty."

Nervy held my gaze. His lips wobbled, but then he reached down to a remote on his waist. "Loppies do this under protest. Loppies not agree."

"That's okay." I patted his shoulder as I stood up straight. "Your protest is noticed."

The door slid open, and the Xaberians on the other side jerked to attention. One of them noticed Nervy and reached out a long tentacle arm with a pincher on the end toward him. I knocked it away.

"I'll come. The beast isn't here. The Inklas killed him. But I'm here, and as long as you don't hurt the Loppies, I'll come with you. If you hurt them…" I paused and told the biggest lie of my life. "I'll kill the Beast's baby inside of me."

Whitten

I woke up to something hitting me—little fists of fury with a squeaky stammering voice. The fists felt more like annoying pats, but the message was conveyed nonetheless.

"What?" I rubbed my eyes, feeling groggy and reached for my mate. My paws came up empty, and I frowned.

The fists continued on my side, and I rolled onto my back to glare up at a furry face. "What?" I grumped again. How had one of these little fleckers gotten into our dwelling. I'd bet my soft mate had let one in…

"Beasty!" Nervy was in my face, his little ears twitching, his face scrunched up in pain. The actual alarm in his voice finally registered. I sat upright so quickly that I nearly knocked him over. He stumbled back, and a loose belt around his waist jangled.

I took in his state. His shoulders heaved, and he panted through an open mouth. Eyes bloodshot. Panicked. The poor little thing was absolutely panicked. I felt my own body respond. My heart rate increased as I swung my legs over the edge of the bed.

"N-No fur gone." Nervy stammered.

I had to have heard him wrong. "Gone?"

His face crumpled. "N-No fur tells Loppie to open door. To let No Fur go. No Fur says No Fur saves Loppies. Loppies shouldn't have let No Fur go." He collapsed onto the ground as I stood upright, forcing myself to remain calm and get all the details.

"Open what door?" I asked.

Nervy stammered. Couldn't get a word out.

" Open what door ?" I hollered.

That did nothing to help his nerves. He went into full body shakes. The door to my dwelling was left open, and the village had started to wake. I strode toward the door, expecting any moment to see Lorna coming around the corner, smiling broadly?—

"No Fur leaves with the Xaberians so Loppies aren't hurt." Nervy's voice came from behind me. I froze. My heart stopped. I slowly turned on a heel. "What did you say?"

Nervy's breath hitched. "No Fur says… No Fur tells Xaberians she goes with Xaberians if Xaberians don't hurt Loppies. She says…" he swallowed. "She says she has Beasty's baby."

I didn't crumple. But my body went into lockdown safety mode. I went very still. My brain stopped. In my mind, I felt Lorna. I had interpreted her stream in my mind to be calm, but now I saw the undercurrent of fear hiding behind the brave surface.

She'd done it. She'd snuck out while I was asleep to save the Loppies. I remembered how devastated that she'd been that she couldn't do anything for the females back in the underground prison. But she'd been able to do something now, so she'd done it.

My body reset. Came back online. I wanted to be furious. I wanted to rage. But I also understood my mate. She must have found out the Loppies were threatened. And she hadn't wanted to risk me. But she'd been willing to risk herself…and our chit. If that last part was true. Maybe she'd lied… maybe…

My head spun. I rubbed between my eyes.

"Xaberians are watching," Nervy spoke. "Xaberians not hurt Loppies. No Fur tells Xaberians Beasty not alive. But Xaberians still wait. Xaberians cut signal."

Cut signal. Cut signal . The words rattled around in my head, and my brain finally comes to life. They might have cut the signal for me not to be able to use Nervy's comms. But the signal in my neck… that would go through. I just had to get above ground without the Xaberians attacking. Actually, fleck that. Let them attack. I'd take them all out before tracking down my mate.

I stalked outside to find Mable there, wringing her paws together with her guards around her. "Mable doesn't know how No Fur knows truth. Mable protects Beasty and No Fur." Her voice was bordering on hysterics, but she got herself under control. Her guards wore full armor, and I clenched my paws. "Mable sends guards to find No Fur. Loppies save?—"

" No ," I barked. Mable jerked, and the guards rustled with alarmed movement. One tripped over his big boots and fell into another guard, who couldn't maintain his balance in his armor. He tripped over his own spear and in a moment, a pile of four clunky armored Loppies were on the ground, rolling as they tried to get back to their feet.

Mable tried to help them, but I delicately pushed her out of the way and righted each Loppie. Fear shone in their eyes, but so did courage. Fatas bless these Loppies. I stepped back and approached Mable. "My mate left to protect the Loppies. I will not allow her sacrifice to be in vain. Not one hair on a Loppies body will be hurt, do you understand?" I pointed a claw in Mable's face. "Loppies will remain here. You have done everything for us. More than enough. We have to solve our own problems now. Please open the doors. I'll leave. Loppies will not be hurt."

Mable didn't like this. She fretted. Stomped her little feet. But eventually, she gave up in the face of my unwavering stance. I went down to one knee in front of her and did the only thing I could think to give her my utmost respect. I crossed my arms at the wrist and held them in front of my neck. This was the Drixonian greeting and sign of respect. Mable seemed to understand. Her eyes took in my gesture, and she patted her chest. "Mable and Loppies always here for Beastys."

"Beastys are always here for Loppies too." I rose to my feet and shook out my arms. "Time to open the doors. Beasty is on his way out to get his mate."

Before I left, Nervy explained that the guards were no longer at the doors, but they remained near the surface entrances to the Loppies village, looking for any sign of me and for any Loppies brave enough to try to follow them.

I made it to the surface by climbing a set of narrow stairs that my body barely fit through. This was the back entrance and less watched on account of how few bodies could fit through at one time. One Loppie at a time wasn't threatening. Even a few dozen wasn't, but the Xaberians weren't taking any chances.

As soon as I pulled myself out of the entrance, I couldn't see any Xaberians, but I spotted several dozen Dayloes. We were on the other side of the mountain from where we'd been abducted by the Inklas. The weather was cool here. Vegetation grew well. The base of the mountain where I'd emerged had several places to hide—crevices in the cliff face, boulders, and large bushes. At the sight of the enemies, I cursed and ran at a crouch to a nearby crevice. I crammed my body inside of it and caught my breath. Then I did the one thing I'd came up here to do. I reached behind my neck and pressed the emergency signal.

Even if my brothers left immediately, they wouldn't be here anytime soon, but the signal was live and active now. They could track me wherever I went. And I was going to waste no time. I had raided the Loppies weapon armory before I left. They hadn't had much, and most of what they owned was foraged from other species. But a few decent, sharp blades were now in my possession.

The Dayloes were plentiful, and while they were great fighters, their natural armor could make them hard to kill. Xaberians were another story. Their tentacles were far reaching, and they didn't have many vulnerable parts of their bodies that were easily reached.

Still, I couldn't just wait here. Lorna's stream in my mind had started trembling. Flickering. Her fear was ramping up, and with it came my anger. My drive. My energy. Even now, I could feel my muscles seem to swell under my skin. My brothers had mentioned how the loks had made them feel when their mates were threatened. I hadn't quite believed them… until now.

I crept along the mountain base until I drew closer to the ridge. I counted the Dayloes and studied their weapons. They wore laser guns on chest straps, but from experience I knew they were terrible shots, and definitely not at close range. I, however, was best at close range with my blades, machets, and quickness.

I had never been so ready for bloody hand-to-hand combat. I ran at the closest Dayloe and took him down with a blade to the throat. I killed two more before the guards realized what was happening. And then chaos erupted. They didn't approach me one by one. They rushed at me in a crowd a dozen strong. Laser fire blew past my head. The smell of burning fur tickled my nose. I felt a wrench in my tail as I bobbed and weaved among the Dayloes. I slashed with my machets and blades. I gouged eyes with my claws. I bit into a neck until blood gushed in my mouth.

Something hot and sharp sank into my back. I growled into the Dayloes arm I currently had my jaws locked on and tore the limb in two. I turned to find a blade sank into my shoulder. A Dayloes pointed a laser gun between my eyes. A foot slammed into the backs of my thighs. I went to my knees. Blood filled my mouth. My head swam. The stream in my mind was a roaring panic.

Fleck. I had thought I could take out these Dayloes on my own. I'd been close. Maybe a dozen remained. Bodies littered the grass. I closed my eyes. Remembered Lorna's taste. I couldn't give up. I opened my eyes and lashed out with my claws. The gun fired. Heat slammed into my arm like a punch. I gasped for air as I rolled onto my side. A Dayloes raised his big, armored boot over my head to slam into my skull. I growled and tried to roll out of the way, but my body wasn't listening.

My growl intensified and then suddenly the Dayloes was gone with a high-pitched yelp. I heard a squelch. The shadows of the Dayloes standing above me disappeared. I blinked up at the bright sun and turned my head. At first all I could make out were dark figures. Then my eyes adjusted. Wings. Those were definitely feathered wings. Machets. A striped tail shimmied as claws flashed. Blood spurted. I managed to roll onto my side. Then my knees. My brother Eleric kicked at a Dayloes body with a heaving sigh. "That wasn't much of a fight." Tain was still tearing into a Dayloes who was definitely already dead, but then Tain had anger issues.

Wait, Eleric? Tain? Was I seeing things?

Eleric turned to me, and his pinched mouth tipped up. "Hey, there, brother."

I blinked. Tain glanced up with blood dripping from his whiskers. "‘Sup."

"Stop saying that," Eleric snapped at him.

"Kyle says it."

"Kyle's a teenage human."

"What?" I knelt in the grass. "How did you get here?"

"We meant to get here as soon as the sun rose, but someone packed too much food, and it weighed us down."

Tain leapt off the Dayloes body he'd been terrorizing and rose to his feet, cleaning his whiskers. "I wanted to make a good first impression on your mate."

Eleric sighed. "Anyway, while we were on our way, we got your signal. And just in time before your head was about to be mush."

Tain's purple eyes flashed. "Speaking of your mate, where is she?"

My body was on fire, but at the mention of my mate, the pain receded. A grim smile spread over my face. "You'll meet her soon. Just as soon as we save her from the Xaberians."