“No,” she said. “Klang and Trang brought us here.”
I froze in pulling the fibers out. My heart was in my throat.
“Klang and Trang?” I said. “Who are they?”
“The guys who found me trying to get you in the cart,” Maddy said. “It was a good job too because I’m not sure I would have managed without them.”
“Who are they?”
“They’re a couple of local Yayora. You know, the local little green people? They drove the cart here while I slept in the back with you. They’re really nice. I know you’ll like them.”
I’m not so sure about that.
“Are they still here?” I said.
“They’re downstairs,” Maddy said.
I crawled over to the narrow set of steps that led to the first floor. I peered over the side.
Please tell me I’m wrong…
They sat hunched around a small cooking pot. They sliced vegetables and chopped fresh meat they’d caught. It looked like a perfectly normal scene.
Unless you knew what you were looking for.
“We can get dressed and go down there,” Maddy said. “They said they would cook something while they kept watch.”
“I’m not sure that’s a good idea,” I said.
“You don’t need to be nervous. They’re lovely people. We never would have gotten here if it wasn’t for them.”
Sure. Right where they can keep an eye on us.
“We have to get out of here,” I said.
“Get out of here?” Maddy said, taken aback. “We’ve got a few more hours for you to rest before we need to make a move on the shuttlecraft. And get this, they’re contestants on this dumbass gameshow too!”
“Pack up your things. We’re leaving.”
Maddy folded her arms.
“I’m not going anywhere unless you tell me what’s going on,” she said.
“Those things down there, they’re not Yayora,” I said. “They’re Changelings.”
Maddy unfolded her arms.
“Changelings?” she said. “But they look nothing like them. Changelings are giant insects.”
“Not when they shift. They can adopt any shape similar in size to their own. That’s why they like copying other creatures like ours. Because we fit perfectly within their range.”
Maddy ran her hands through her hair.
“No,” she said. “That can’t be right. How do you know they’re Changelings?”
“Because of the telltale signs,” I said.
“Like what? Maybe you only think they’re Changelings.”
“Take a look at them,” I said. “Look at their wrists. See that bunch of skin like a bracelet? That shows you it’s them. When they take the shape of a creature, the excess skin has to bunch up somewhere, and for them, it’s around their joints. No doubt about it. If I had to guess, I would say they’re trackers like our horned friend earlier.”
“Then why did they help me? They could have killed us easily. They would never get an easier kill than that!”
I shrugged.
“There could be many reasons,” I said. “Maybe the show’s controllers are suffering bad ratings and they don’t want us to die too quickly. Maybe they want to design a more exciting finale. Or maybe these guys are cruel and want to play with us before they kill us.”
Maddy stamped her foot on the floor in agitation.
“I’m such an idiot!” she said.
I raised my hands to signal for her not to stamp her foot again.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “If I knew what they were, what they really were…”
“You would be dead,” I said. “And so would I. It might not seem like it now but your ignorance could be the best thing to happen to us. You got the help you needed. I was unconscious and unable to recognize them for what they are.”
“So what do you suggest we do?”
“We have to get out of here.”
“How do we do that? We can’t just walk down there! They’ll know something is up and kill us if we try to leave!”
I thought through our situation. We were trapped in the barn’s attic with a pair of killers downstairs. What were our advantages?
“They think I’m still unconscious,” I said. “So what you’re going to do is go down there and tell them you want to get some fresh air or feed the arjath or something. Then you’ll bring that arjath over here, to this hole in the roof. I’ll throw down a rope and climb down it. We’ll be done before they notice anything’s up.”
Maddy gnawed on her bottom lip.
“I don’t know…” she said. “What if they notice something’s up?”
“Then you can shout for help. I’ll come down and fight.”
She ran a hand over my shoulder.
“You can’t do that,” she said. “You’re not fully healed yet.”
“You’re going to have to try your best,” I said. “It’s the easiest, safest way.”
And you’ll be outside in case anything goes wrong. You can escape to safety if I can’t reach you.
I checked the device at my waist. It blinked with the signal.
“It’s not much further,” I said. “If we ride the arjath toward the horizon at a steady pace for an hour or two, we can make it to the shuttlecraft and get out of here.”
I grabbed Maddy by the shoulders.
“Do you think you can do it?” I said.
She looked a little hesitant.
“Yes,” she said. “Yes, I can do it.”
I kissed her full on the lips. I swear, I would never get tired of how good she tasted.
“You can do this,” I said. “I know you can.”
Maddy took a deep breath and descended the steps. How any man could resist gazing at her and not lose his mind, I didn’t know. I watched that sexy ass as it descended the steps into the lion’s den.
I watched as Maddy headed down the stairs, bracing the wall with one hand. The creatures heard her coming and turned to watch her approach.
Klang licked his lips on seeing her. My fists clenched. I swear to the Creator, if they so much as put a hand on her…
Their ugly sneers curled upward into warm smiles as she hit the first floor.
“How’s the young Titan
