Selena joined Arden. The alien woman somehow looked nervous and calm all at once.
“Okay?” Arden asked.
“I was going to ask you the same thing.”
“I’ll be happier once this is over.”
Together, they watched the berserkers set up two small ramps and roll their monstrous bikes off the Hawks. As the men each claimed their bikes, she watched them start to mount up. They all suited their machines—big, rugged, unique.
Tane turned to Selena and raised a hand. He curled a finger at her. Selena hesitated for a second, then walked over. Gingerly, the alien woman climbed on behind the squad leader.
Arden turned, pressing the buttons on the drone to activate it. With a beep, it rose up in the air, hovering above her.
Nearby, Dom swung a muscled leg over his bike and settled on the seat. She saw him start the silent, thermonuclear engine.
“Have you been on a bike before?” he asked.
She shook her head.
He held out a hand to her and she took it. She trusted this man with everything—her body, her battered soul, her dented heart. She swung on behind him. He pulled her arms around his middle, and she held on tight.
“Don’t let go,” he warned her.
She nestled into him, their bodies pressed together. For a brief second, she hated the carbon fiber between them. They were about to head into a dangerous situation, deep in alien territory, but strangely, Arden felt safe. Dom made her feel safe, but it was more than that. Arden felt stronger, like she could do her part.
Her kids would be proud of her. Jason would call her badass.
“No raptors on screen, Tane.” Indy’s calm voice in their earpieces.
“Acknowledged. We’re heading up the track now.” Tane’s bike shot forward, Hemi following.
Dom took off, and Arden clenched her fingers harder around his stomach.
He followed the others and they moved down the overgrown track. The trees grew thick around them, and pretty ferns grew in profusion as well.
She could easily imagine the tourists trekking down this path, excited to be heading to see the glow worm tunnel. The echoes of old voices rang in her ears.
The Gizzida had stolen so much. Taken what wasn’t theirs.
Today, that ended.
Arden looked all around at the other berserkers. The bikes were silent, but they still looked badass.
They bumped along the rutted track, taking the turns and curves. Dom dodged some heavy potholes and track marks that looked quite new. Her stomach tightened. They were in the right place.
“You guys should be at the tunnel entrance.” Indy’s voice over the comm line.
Arden felt the bike slow beneath her. She leaned around Dom and looked ahead.
The entrance to the tunnel loomed before them.
It was a large, oval shape, with ferns hanging down all around it. The ground in front of it was disturbed, with deep, rutted marks.
Her throat thickened. The aliens had been here.
Tane lifted his hand, and everyone pulled the bikes to a stop. The berserkers cut the engines, then rolled the bikes off to the side of the track.
As everyone dismounted, Arden checked the drone. It hovered silently in the air nearby, already starting to scan and record the area. Around her, the berserkers moved into position, lifting their carbines.
“I’m ready to blow up some alien shit,” Hemi muttered.
Arden looked at Dom, so still and composed. His gloved hands were wrapped around his weapon, his knives ready and sheathed on his belt.
“Let’s move.” Tane jerked his head.
As one, they moved toward the tunnel entrance. Arden’s heart beat hard and loudly in her ears.
They stepped inside the darkness and into a fairytale.
Arden couldn’t hold back a gasp. She arched her head, looking at the sprinkle of color along the roof of the tunnel. The glow worms looked like stars. Nearby, she saw Selena staring in wonder, her face alight.
“Keep quiet,” Tane murmured. “We don’t want to announce to the aliens that we’re here. Indy, we’re heading deeper into the tunnel.”
Indy’s garbled, distorted voice came over the comm.
Tane’s lips pressed into a hard line. “Damn. We’re losing comms in the tunnel.”
They marched deeper into the glow worm tunnel.
Arden tried not to trip, but the glow worms didn’t give off much light. Just enough to make out the shadows of the others.
They kept moving, and she couldn’t begin to guess how far they’d gone. Ahead, she sensed the tunnel widening out.
The drone moved in front of her, and she knew it was scanning. She had a tiny screen attached to her wrist, the screen’s brightness down as low as possible. She glanced at it, and saw no sound, no heat signatures.
“I can’t see a fucking thing,” Hemi muttered.
“Do we risk flashlights?” Ash asked.
“Stop,” Tane murmured in their earpieces.
They all stopped, except for Selena. She took a few more steps forward. Tane reached for her, but the woman lifted a hand toward the roof. Her fingers uncurled.
All of a sudden, the glow worms flared brightly. Arden bit her lip, watching as a wash of blue-green light filled the tunnel.
Oh, God. Selena was communicating with the tiny creatures. Incredible. The light illuminated the roughhewn, rock walls and bumpy floor.
And the octagon-shaped bomb resting in the center of the space.
The men all swiveled, aiming their carbines and muttering curses.
Arden’s drone beeped softly and she quickly lifted her tablet screen. Her heart leaped into her throat. “I have heat signatures.” Her voice was an urgent whisper. “They’re flaring to life all over the tunnel.”
A deep, inhuman growl echoed through the tunnel, raising the hairs on the back of her neck. She felt the berserkers tense all around her. She lifted her head and watched hellions wink into life in the tunnel.
They had long, canine-like bodies, with spikes along their backs. Drool dripped from their jaws and they had red-glowing bellies filled with poison.
The alien hunting dogs slunk out of the darkness. Somehow, they’d been camouflaged, and her mind turned to the stealth raptor she’d tangled with.
“Arden, get to the bomb,” Tane ordered. “Squad
