Neverwylde (The Rim of the World Book 3) (19 page)

Read Neverwylde (The Rim of the World Book 3) Online

Authors: Linda Mooney

Tags: #outer space, #space ships, #science fiction, #sensuous, #adventure, #aliens, #action, #sci-fi, #space opera, #other worlds

An hour passed, then two. Gaveer and Mellori passed around their water pouches. Sandow handed out emergency rations. They ate as quietly as possible.

At the end of the third hour, it was Cooter who broke the silence. “So I guess we stay here until it gets light, and we can see where we are before we decide what to do next?”

“At least until daylight,” Kyber acknowledged.

“Anyone want to guess where here is? Jules? Dox? You said to hit the white light.”

“Didn’t we determine earlier that the white light was the temple?” Kelen asked.

“Yes,” Jules nodded. “But did anyone else notice anything…different…about those other two lights?”

“Different in what way?” Mellori inquired.

Jules drew an invisible diagram in the air. “The temple light was at the very top, and all the other colored lights were directly below it. But the other two white lights, those were at opposite ends. One to the left, the one in the middle, and one to the far right.”

“What are you saying?” Fullgrath demanded.

Jules checked over his shoulder. Getting to his feet, he climbed over the barricade and walked over to where the slab was located. “Dox, shine that light over here, would you?”

Dox kept the beam where Jules pointed. Presently, a part of the wall dropped, revealing the familiar diagram of lights.

Except…

Nudging Kyber, Kelen pointed to the panel. “Jules, is it me, or are those lights in a different pattern?”

The navigator let out a loud sigh. “You’re right.”

“If you hit another white light, does this mean we are in another temple?” Tojun inquired.

“Or maybe we’re in another part of the original temple we weren’t aware of,” Mellori guessed.

“No.” Fullgrath. “Three. You gotta think in threes, remember? Jules, didn’t you say there were three of every color light?”

“Yes.”

“What if the three white lights aren’t all a part of the same temple like the green and orange ones were? I’m siding with the big gray Seneecian. My vote is there are three temples on this planet, and we just transported to another one.”

“What makes you so certain?” Sandow challenged with a smile.

“Because it is cold here,” Massapa announced. “It was not cold where we left.”

“Speaking of threes.” Fullgrath crossed his legs. “Think back.
Two
lakes?
Two
pylons?
Two
lake monsters?
One
freaking huge net?” The man shook his head. “It doesn’t add up. We’re short, and we’ve been short this whole time.”

“I agree,” Kelen told him. She glanced at Dox and smiled. “At least we figured out where the elevator was located at the lakes, thanks to Dox.”

“Speaking of.” Cooter laid his pulse rifle across his lap. “What Plat did back there at the lakes, sacrificing his guy like that, isn’t that against some kind of Seneecian protocol?”

“It would bring him the death penalty on Seneecia if it were ever found out,” Kyber said with a low growl. “A D’har never places himself above the lives of his men.”

“Where do you think he is now? Think he got out safely?” Mellori questioned.

“What about Dayall?” Kelen added, turning to Cooter. “Didn’t you say you shot him?”

“I was firing around him, trying to free Doc and Massapa,” the security officer corrected. “That’s when the clickers showed up. I started shooting at them and rock shards were flying everywhere. I think that’s what hit him. I don’t know if he’s dead or wounded. Once Doc and Massapa managed to escape, we busted our butts to get out of there.”

It grew quiet again. A soft snore to the side got their attention. Dox had curled into a ball underneath his blanket and gone to sleep. Gradually, everyone found a comfortable position in which to spend the night.

“I will take first watch,” Kyber told them. The others accepted his offer. Massapa volunteered to take second shift. Kleesod agreed to assume the third shift. Fullgrath tossed Kyber his tube light and rolled over onto his side.

Kelen nuzzled Kyber’s shoulder. He snaked an arm around her waist and pressed her closer.

“I rejoiced when I discovered you awake and alive.” He kept his voice low where only she could hear.

Kelen smiled up at him. She wanted his kiss, needed to feel his mouth upon hers as much as she needed his warmth, but Seneecian etiquette prohibited public displays of affection, even between mates. Although Kyber had gone against all known Seneecian laws by taking her as his own, she didn’t want to risk taxing the ire of his fellow crew members. It was enough that they had accepted her as his Confirmed.

“How are you feeling?” he whispered.

“I’ll make it. And you?” Beneath the blanket, she tapped his thigh, unable to reach his hip, but he understood what she meant.

“We need time to heal. Both of us. I…” He bowed his head, searching for words. She knew what he was thinking.

“Kyber, you were sick.”

He lifted his face, his eyes boring into hers. She could see he was agonizing over the guilt.

“I attacked you,” he fiercely whispered.

“You were sick,” she repeated more forcefully. Lifting a hand, she ran her fingers over his jaw and gave him a loving smile. “You’re right about us needing time to heal. Think we’ll find it here?”

Kyber glanced around the open area. The tube light illuminated several meters in all directions. It gave them enough distance to see if anything was coming, and time to defend themselves if there was. But as for knowing what lay beyond, past the darkness…

“I cannot promise anything other than my feelings for you,” he finally answered.

She nodded, resting her cheek against his shoulder. “As long as we’re together, we’ll make it.”

If he said anything afterwards, she wasn’t aware of it. With their combined body heat making her drowsy, Kelen allowed herself to sleep, knowing he would keep her safe.

Chapter 29

New

A gentle caress across her lips awakened her. Kelen opened her eyes to find the others already waking and stretching. Kyber motioned to Kleesod.

“Anything?”

“No. It was quiet.”

Dox sneezed. The sound echoed around them like a gunshot. Wiping his nose with his shirt sleeve, the little man crawled out from underneath his blanket.

“Still cold.”

Mellori took a sip of water and cleared his throat. “Yep.”

Sandow glanced around them. “Well, it looks like our old temple.” He pointed overhead at the arched ceiling.

“Let us look around first before we make any decisions,” Kyber ordered.

Jules intervened. “I have a better idea. Let’s eat something first. In case something tries to attack us, at least we’ll have the energy to escape.”

Fullgrath snorted. “I second that suggestion.”

After inspecting the barricade for any sign of tampering and finding none, they pulled more emergency rations from the bundles. Kelen handed Kyber a packet, which he eyed suspiciously.

“What is stro-gan-off?”

“Beef and noodles.”

“What is noodles?”

Kelen laughed softly. “It’s protein and carbs.”

He sniffed it. “It smells—”

“Oh, so
now
you’re going to get picky about what you put in your mouth?” she teased.

A sound put them on instant alert and they huddled behind their makeshift barricade of bundles, when Massapa appeared. The Seneecian waved for them to follow.

“You must see this.”

“Now?” Fullgrath asked around a mouthful of food.

Massapa’s expression was stone serious. “Yes. Now.”

Kelen kept the blanket wrapped around herself as they obeyed and left their bunker to see what concerned the Seneecian.

They had gone less than a dozen meters when she realized this was not part of their temple. Neither were they anywhere close to that location. Cooter also believed it, pointing out patches of ice forming on the walls.

It was getting colder the further they advanced, until they reached a wide open area. They stared in shock at the sight which lay beyond the arched portal leading to the outside.

Unable to stop herself, she advanced slowly to the doorway, bracing herself mentally and physically as the absolute whiteness filled their line of sight. Filled it, expanded, and eventually encompassed them completely.

“Oh my God.” Kelen pressed a hand to her mouth in shock.

What should have been desert was snow.

What should have been a never ending plain was no longer flat. Boulders lay strewn about, and in the near distance she could see mountains.

“What’s on the other side?” Jules murmured.

They turned as one to hurry to the other end of the temple. There, instead of a large flat slab of rock extending out into space, it was a shiny sheet of metal, almost transparent to the point of appearing invisible.

Kyber came up behind her and enfolded his arms around her shoulders as they all gaped at the sight.

The world dropped away, disappearing into the vastness of space. But where the earthen sides extending to both horizons should have been rocky, they were instead covered in sheets of ice, giving them the impression they were suspended above a planet-sized glacier.

They could not see the sun, although there was light. And almost directly in front of them, suspended in the sky, hung three different sized moons, almost in perfect alignment and each in a different phase.

“By the four gods, are we even on the same planet?” Gaveer wondered in a reverent voice.

“Yes,” Dox replied with an unusually somber tone. “Same Neverwylde, but not. Not old. New. New part.”

Kelen glanced at him. “What do you mean?”

The young man pointed to the chasm of space. “On another side. The cold side,” he told them and shuddered.

In the distance, something howled.

About the Author:

Linda loves to write sensuously erotic romance with a fantasy, paranormal, or science fiction flair. Her technique is often described as being as visual as a motion picture or graphic novel.

A wife, mother, grandmother, and retired Kindergarten and music teacher, she lives in a small south Texas town near the Gulf coast where she delves into other worlds filled with daring exploits, adventure, and intense love.

She has numerous best sellers, including 10 consecutive #1s. In 2009, she was named Whiskey Creek Press Torrid's Author of the Year, and her book
My Strength, My Power, My Love
was named the 2009 WCPT Book of the Year. In 2011, her book
Lord of Thunder
was named the Epic Ebook "Eppie" Award Winner for Best Erotic Sci-Fi Romance.

In addition, she write naughty erotic romances under the name of Carolyn Gregg, and horror under the pseudonym of Gail Smith.

For more information about Linda Mooney books and titles, and to sign up for her newsletter, please visit her website.

http://www.LindaMooney.com

Other Science Fiction Romances by Linda Mooney

The Battle Lord Saga

The Battle Lord’s Lady

Her Battle Lord’s Desire

A Battle Lord’s Heart

One Battle Lord’s Fate

This Battle Lord’s Quest

Every Battle Lord’s Nightmare

Captive Surrender (aka Beauty’s Alien Beast)