Shadow's Chosen (Dark World Mates Book 3) Read online

  "What else do they say about the bounty?" Nezka asked.

  Ruumas swiveled back to his screen and searched the network. "They are looking for teams or individuals to send in. Currency seems like a good price...mainly for the heads of the leaders of gangs, including these Red Blades. There are only a few pictures and names but not much else."

  Nezka crossed his arms. "We go in seeking this bounty. That will give us access to the undercity and gain trust with the city leaders. Let them think we are there to exterminate their enemies. But it will be the humans we are looking for."

  The others seemed to grow excited by this prospect.

  "A double mission? '' said Vijnn, rubbing his scaly hands together. "I like it."

  "Do we get to take the heads of the gang leaders if we like?" asked Jazlin from the back.

  Nezka smiled. "If you want. But only if it doesn't deviate from our true goal. Understood?"

  The others barked in agreement.

  The door of the room slid open once more, and Silfres stepped inside. "You won't believe it," he said to Nezka. Then he looked over to the skra. "Ruumas, check the map on the pulse tracker, and bring it up on the main display."

  Ruumas opened up the map as the lygin moved to Nezka's side. "I happened to catch the signal going off as I was checking the ship's radar," Silfres said. "The drogin’s mind is clean by the way."

  "The humans were found?" Nezka could feel his spines tingling in hopeful excitement.

  "Not the ones we are looking for, unfortunately," the lygin said, and in that same moment, the map on the slab changed to that of Irosa, tiny but still visible. Not far from it, just outside its orbit, was a steady pulse slowly making its way closer. Silfres gestured toward the pulse. “But new ones just arrived."

  The team went silent. They looked to Nezka, and his eyes flickered to each of them. He looked down at the small pulse for a long moment as if it were a signal calling to only him. He traced a finger along his neck, across the beaded necklace that hung close to his skin, and smiled. "Gear up. We are going down."

  Three

  Elise's seat jolted and shook as her team's ship hit the atmosphere. A dull roar deafened her as they fell and the engines fired, tendrils of flickering sparks hitting the glass.

  A nice way to wake from a nap.

  The halo-shaped device that had rested firmly across her head lifted slowly, and she blinked several times, coming out of her sleep. The others sat in rows on each side of her, all facing the window that gave them a clear view of the vast city coming in fast before them. The ship began to slow, and, from the corner of her eye, Elise saw the ship's controls being taken over by an unknown pilot. Likely those at the city terminal making sure the ship landed safely at the docks. When they hit the ground, it was with a soft bump and nothing more. Smooth landing.

  They waited for the ship to decompress and power down before unlocking from their seats. Though the flights were faster now than they had been some years ago, Elise still felt like she'd been sitting in the seat for months, even though it had only been a few days. She stretched her legs and unhooked from her seat then slowly rose, watching the others do the same.

  A few groaned and cursed. Bruce immediately did a few leg lunges.

  "I still hate flying," said Jerico, not far away. "My stomach feels inside out."

  "I told you, you should have taken a pill, man," said Reese, groaning as he bent his back.

  Helen came around and checked their vitals. "You all will live. As usual. Jerico, don't throw up in the empty storage again. Use a waste box." Helen aimed her little scanner device at Elise and nodded her head. "All clear."

  The doors opened with a hiss, and they each took up their bags and gear and stumbled out onto the docks. The area was huge, larger than any of the docks at home, spanning several football fields in length. But surprisingly, Elise saw few other ships parked with theirs. Only one other was stationed close by. A large, black ship, sharp and ominous. As they gathered outside on the platform, Elise couldn't help stare at it curiously.

  "Whoever owns that one must be a scary son of a bitch," said Tom, next to her.

  Elise eyed the ship seriously for a second longer then shrugged. "Or they're just edgy," she said as she swung her bag over her shoulder.

  From a doorway not far ahead of them came a set of drogin. They bowed their heads once as they approached, and Elise and her team did the same.

  "Welcome to Tyrminis," one said, a tall drogin with pinkish brown skin, caramel colored eyes, and tufts of fur-like hair across her skull. By the slender build, Elise was certain it was a female. The woman greeted them slowly, but Elise and the others could understand perfectly well. Sia, with the help of the city official, Qorey, had linked their headsets to the drogin language program. While they traveled, they learned and memorized the drogin speech. The technology was advanced and brilliantly impressive. What would have taken a few months with Earth’s tech took only a few days, preparing them to interact with the people of Irosa without issue.

  "My name is Toni. Please follow us." As Toni turned back toward the door, the two other drogin at her side helped carry their bags.

  They entered a large burgundy building made of a steel Elise could not identify but that reminded her of the chrome of a car. The doors slid open for them just like the ones at home, but the glass making up the windows and walls of the interior were of a darker shade. Some, Elise noticed, were darker or lighter depending on what rooms they were trying to hide. Everything seemed to be made of glass or metal, even the floor and ceiling. The lights which made up the frames of the ceiling and walls brightened as they walked by. When they came to a circular main foyer, Elise stretched her neck up and saw a kaleidoscope of colors and lights at the very top, basking the area in reds, blues, and purples.

  "The energy they would need for all this has to be insane," whispered Amy, close by.

  "And we thought our cities were wasting power," Elise mumbled. As her eyes studied the various levels above, shaping the interior in a cork-screw design, she noticed no plants or fountains which usually adorned human foyers. Just many lights and a few screens displaying neon-lit images advertising strange products.

  "Your rooms are prepared." Toni gestured to the floors above. "My two assistants will guide you to them, and you can get settled in. When you are ready, please return to this floor. Come midday, the city officials will call a meeting with all active teams. There are others who will be joining you at this meeting, all whose mission involves the undercity."

  Before any could question her about anything else, Toni left them, and her assistants beckoned them to follow.

  ***

  Their rooms were far more luxurious than what was necessary for a team that was likely only spending one night in them. No one complained, of course, though Elise felt a little uncomfortable at the idea of sleeping in a bed that was twice her size and having what was equivalent to an apartment all to herself. As she cleaned up in the obnoxiously large bathroom then dressed out of her flight suit and into a simple pair of leggings, T-shirt, and slim jacket, she observed the cityscape outside her bedroom window. There was no doubt that it was breathtaking. And intimidating. The smallest buildings she could see were taller than the ones on earth. And the largest looked like they touched the sky, clouds sweeping past them indifferently. As Elise looked down, she saw a web of bridges and streets. Surprisingly, they were not bombarded by cars but what seemed to be trains. Overhead were several flying vehicles going in and out of the towering skyscrapers. It seemed their main sources of transport in the higher levels were trams or small ships. One railway was partially hidden by a series of tunnels, and when she saw the train speed by, she almost missed it. It flew by just as fast if not faster than the bullet trains on Earth. What cars did hug the roads were very small—most even looked like bikes. The streets and bridges were crammed otherwise with people. When Elise focused in on the cityfolk, she was shocked to find some were not drogin but other species, those from othe
r far-off planets. A few looked like cats, others like lizards. All were colorful and unique in a sea of moving bodies, walking along a backdrop of neon lights and brightly colored words.

  She stared down at the scene for a long time, thinking about the people below and those at home. How strange and vast the universe was. And how little she felt within it.

  Her hand instinctively reached out beside her but caught at nothing. She turned her head and looked at the empty space with disappointment.

  She wished her sister were there.

  A knock came at her door. Taking a deep breath and putting on her tough girl face, Elise turned from the window and headed over to the door to let whoever was on the other side enter.

  Jerico smiled back at her, his hand resting on the side of the door. "Adrien is calling us down." He entered the room and whistled. "Wow, you got a way better view than me. All I got was the side of the building over."

  "It's crazy, isn't it?" Elise said, shaking her head as she peered back out the window. "It's so..."

  "Overwhelming," Jerico answered. "Yeah. To think we will be down there by tomorrow morning. Well, okay, judging by the planet's rotation, about twenty-six hours give or take."

  "You think we're ready?" Elise asked then looked over at him.

  Jerico shrugged. "As ready as we'll ever be. Why? You having second thoughts?"

  Elise's gaze fell back to the window. "I...no. I don't know. It's just...different."

  "Well, we are about to get the full run down. And we won't be going in alone, remember."

  Elise nodded but inside she was uncertain. She just had this strange feeling. Not awful. She wouldn't commit to that. But strange. She’d never felt it before on any mission, but maybe it was because in the past she knew what she was getting herself into. She knew this would be a challenging mission, and that in itself didn't bother her. She was always up for a challenge. Her father had raised her to be prepared for anything—attacks, strandings, storms...everything. And it wasn't like they hadn't been preparing. They had gone through the whole plan over and over while they readied to depart. They had learned the language, they had learned what they needed to about the planet and its people, and they were about to meet the other teams who would be joining them. Sure, there was always the risk of failure or death that put any soldier on edge. But this felt different. Something about the mission made her feel off.

  But she'd never backed down before, and she wasn't about to now. She had her team with her. Together, they'd be unstoppable. So, with that thought, she brushed the feeling away like it was a pesky bug and smiled at Jerico.

  "I know that smile. You're ready to kick ass." Jerico patted her back then drew her out of the room. "Let's do this."

  She followed him across the hall to the elevator and took it down. Just like at the Grayhart facility, they reached the main foyer and found the team waiting for them.

  They were not alone.

  Elise felt the current of uneasiness in the air as soon as she stepped inside. There were drogin about now, who she could only guess were the city militia or law enforcement. They wore faded black and gray uniforms, the closest to casual wear that wasn't full on armor. They had white armbands with an insignia on each—a shield with a circle in its center. They stood nearby in their own groups, whispering or talking low, their faces turning as they peered over to the far wall.

  Her team stood silent, rigid, their eyes drifting over to the same place the drogins’ gaze wandered; over to a different group sitting by a thick glass wall, just below an ad for some kind of bubbly soft-drink, the glow basking them in red.

  Elise felt herself stop short as she looked at them. They were definitely not from the city. She was certain. By their strange silvery black armor and the way the others seemed to distance themselves from them, she knew they must be outsiders. And boy, did they look like a gnarly, violent sort. Each one unique but also giving off a similarly wicked sort of vibe. Especially one in the middle to whom they seemed to gravitate closest. A scary son of a bitch if she ever saw one. With his dark purple skin painted or perhaps tattooed with white streaks across his arms and neck and along his face like a skull. Pointed ears, white hair, and—perhaps the most disturbing to her—large wolfish eyes, orange like fire. He studied her team with a sharp interest until Jerico called her name, and his gaze turned to her.

  Their eyes locked, and Elise found herself frozen. Just like a deer in the presence of a wolf. He grew still too as he noticed her, and it seemed time stopped briefly as they stared at each other.

  “Elise, come," called Adrien in his rough voice, one she knew he only used when he was agitated by something. The purple devil tilted his head, and Elise forced her eyes away, making her legs move till she found herself in the shelter of bodies that were her team. She could never remember freezing like that. But then she'd never encountered anyone who looked like death before either.

  The team huddled closer than usual, and Elise could feel the tension in each of them. She felt it too, in herself.

  "Who the fuck do you suppose those lot are?" said Reese in a low mutter.

  "I don't know, but they don't look friendly," said Amy.

  "They look like the type we should be fighting down in the gutter city below," Bruce commented.

  "We shouldn't judge," Adrien said, quieting them. "Remember, we are outsiders here too." He didn't sound convincing.

  The others didn't comment, and Elise had to keep herself from glancing back toward the far wall. A heat had begun to simmer at her back, along with that telltale uneasy feeling of being watched. When she dared peek back over, she saw the dark alien still watching her. She shuddered and quickly looked away.

  From another doorway, Toni and her assistants entered. They went over to the group of armored aliens at the wall and bowed. She began to speak to them, and they seemed to understand. Elise noticed a light blinking in their ears as they turned their heads. Some kind of earpiece that she assumed was a sort of translator.

  The group got up, and a set of doors opposite opened, revealing a short tunnelway to another section of the building. The drogin began to move toward it.

  They followed inside, Elise keeping her eyes focused ahead instead of at the group of creepy aliens that lingered behind, knowing if she looked, she'd see Mr. Death watching her again. Her jaw clenched, and her fists tightened, but she refused to meet his glare as they walked past. It occurred to her as they made their way down the tunnel to the next door that the ship they had seen parked at the dock must have belonged to this dark group. What were they doing here? And why? Surely, it wasn't to aid them. They didn't even know who they were.

  As the door at the end of the tunnel slid open, Elise and her team stepped into a dimly-lit, dome-shaped amphitheater with a circular dais at the very center. The team of drogin took their seats near the front, and Elise and her team took seats along the back wall, while the dark group of aliens took theirs by the door. As they each settled in, Toni and her assistants waited by one wall until a pair of drogin in formal uniforms similar to a military commander's entered and started for the central dais. One of them, Elise recognized.

  "High day to you all," said Councilman Qorey, looking very much the same as he had when they last saw him. "I am Councilman and Official Qorey, and this is Official Oryn. We are city sector officers and heads of security and enforcement." He brought up his hand which was gloved in a sort of strange metal, and, with a quick wave of his fingers, a large holographic image of Irosa appeared above him. "You have all come or been brought here for different reasons, each one connected to a larger goal. Approximately twelve days ago, by Irosa's cycle, a group of explorers from the earthian territories called humans trekked into the lower sectors of the city and have hence disappeared. As most of you from Tyrminis know, for several years we have been battling the various gang lords and their breed, closing off gates, trying to fight their spread. It has been, as you know, a hard fight." Qorey gestured with his gloved hand, and the planet grew un
til the city came into view above them. "They have taken over nearly a quarter of the east and south sector of the undercity. It is time we took it back." The city came in even closer, focusing on the same section Elise and her team saw back at Grayhart, the area stretching from the first gate where the Grayhart team disappeared to the energy deposit many miles off and past several other gates, bridges, and tunnelways. "It is our hope to not only find the missing explorers but also to retake the undercity and take out the enemies who have stolen it from us. We still start at the edge of this sector." Qorey pointed to the gate. "This is where their territory begins. We will go in as one. Most of you have been hired to merely take out the threats." He looked over to the team of outsiders and bowed his head. "We thank those willing to aid us. You will be well compensated for each mark that you take out. As for the team from Earth, they are here to find and rescue their own. It is our job to help them as well." Qorey waved his hand again, and the gate zoomed in closer, followed by a blue line drawn across the map. From here, he explained their plan. They would go in through the tunneled gateway together and travel straight across, each team taking siege to the sector points and clearing a path for Elise's team. They would search each stronghold for signs of others until they came to the energy deposit, where hopefully, they would find the lost Grayhart team. It sounded simple enough, and Qorey seemed confident that only the gangs would cause trouble. Those living there should stay out of their way.