Page 26 of HaL

“No, but not all the sensors in the area are reporting correctly either. Things could be happening we simply cannot see.”

Not happy with his answer, I turn to Oset.

“Oset, I did not authorize you to save anything inside the pod. The Korgons might be tracking those pieces as we speak.”

Because I am forcing myself to be here, my beast snarls as I fight the change, since he feels these conversations are unwarranted and a waste of time. Bane steps forward, his smaller form instantly submitting to my beast.

“HaL, I should have convened with you before asking Oset to retrieve them, but these parts are rare, and the compound needs the energy packs for the upcoming frost. I will go through each chip personally to make sure nothing is being transmitted.”

Even though I am aggravated that they did not contact me immediately, I am glad that they proceeded with the compound in mind. It has taken rotations for the males to pull together, as we are all naturally loners.

“Have you tried to contact the ship or drone directly, Bane?”

“I have, with no success.”

“Then I believe we should investigate this interloper who seems to be spying from space!”

However, just as I turn toward the outer terminal and my personal shuttle, it is as if my feet refuse to move. Gritting my teeth, I fight to keep my beast contained as the thought of leaving Dawn behind is unacceptable in his … my mind. I feel Oset come up beside me and he reaches out to touch my arm, only to pull back quickly when a growl leaves my throat.

“HaL, until the mate bond is solidified, you are fighting a losing battle.”

I try to force another step forward only to feel my muscles tighten up further.

“No one else can fly the shuttle, Oset. We must find out who is out there, the compound’s safety depends on it.”

“I agree my friend, but it is not going to be you. Contact your father and see if he can send someone else.”

I try to take one another step only for the hair on my entire body to fully emerge, and Oset steps back.

“HaL, you are dangerous to everyone right now. The best thing you can do is go to your female and stay there until the bond is solidified.”

“I will not force this bond on her. I need to learn to control it. Does … it … get … easier?”

“Yes and no, but time helps. The longer you are together, the more relaxed your beast will become, but I think it is different per couple. Eirwen is a strong, dominant female, so she does not need me, and my beast acknowledges that. Your beast may never feel that way about the little human the Lord of Light chose for you.”

The moment I turn back, the tension in my shoulders relaxes, and my thoughts shift: if I cannot fly out, then who can? I hit my communicator, “SCOUT, I need your assistance.” Before the sentence is fully sent, he is standing before me in his massive battle form.

“HaL, how may I be of assistance? Is the bio-dome failing, or has there been a landslide? My sensors are not finding any fault lines or cracks that are concerning right now. Nevertheless, your voice and facial expressions are at an elevated stress level.”

“These last few risings have shaken up my world, but as for the compound, there have been a few small tremors recently, but nothing maintenance cannot fix. However, that is not why I need you. I am sure you are aware that I have formed a mate bond with the human who landed in the escape pod.”

“Yes. ANDI confirmed his suspicions with the rest of us when Troza requested the update for the translators and medical center. Congratulations.”

“Do not congratulate me yet. Dawn has yet to accept the bond, and I have no idea how to proceed. But that is not what I need your assistance with.

Bane has detected a disturbance in our atmosphere, and I cannot leave to investigate it. Being the only authorized pilot capable of leaving the atmosphere has never been an issue before, but that is no longer the case.

I need you to investigate the disturbance. I also believe Oset needs training so he can take over if I am unavailable. My beast is not going to allow me to stray far from Dawn for quite some time. Until now, I never realized how vulnerable I was leaving my people by having only one trained pilot.”

SCOUT does that odd stillness that reminds you he is so much more than a physical presence, and I hear a large boom that has all of us but him ducking.

“Forgive me for the disturbance, HaL. You were correct to be concerned. That was an unmanned probe stationed in the inner atmosphere watching for any signs of the female.”

“Did it find her pod before we were able to disassemble it?”

“Negative. If it had, it would have left.” He smirks with that utterance. “Before I had it destroyed by an asteroid.”

He lets the statement hang for a moment before continuing.