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I scrambled up the stone incline, trying to reach them so I could help. Obviously I couldn’t do much about the big boulders, but I could at least help move small rocks away from the top of the incline until my puny human arms gave out.
Errok snarled as I, sweating and panting, drew level with them.
“Get back down! In fact, stay on Togo’s back above ground. I will not have you harmed by a falling rock.”
“There’s no time! With the storm coming, we need all hands on deck!” I shot back.
Thaleo’s head snapped to me. His hands never stopped working as he asked, “Storm?”
I nodded, snatching the tablet out of my pocket and flashing it at him. “It’s coming. It will arrive in your territory late tonight or very early in the morning.”
I got my first glimpse of unshielded emotion on Thaleo’s face in that moment. A flash of grave and unmistakable fear.
It was gone in an instant, replaced with stony determination.
“Oh, shit, the tablet!” I practically smacked myself for not thinking of this sooner. “I can send an emergency message to the shuttle. They can come help with this.” The sheer amount of rock that had tumbled down and was now blocking the cave’s entrance made my stomach flip. If those people were trapped in a cave by the rock and then the storm for too long without enough food...
No. We’ll get them out.
I typed out a frantic message on the tablet, praying there wouldn’t be any weird communication issues that stopped my message from reaching Valeria.
A few minutes later, a reply pinged back.
Thank goodness.
“They’re on their way,” I breathed. I didn’t waste any time getting back to work alongside the two Gahns, pulling away small chunks of rock and rolling them down the incline. Errok glared at me, no doubt wanting to tell me to stop and also knowing that arguing with me right now would do no good. Even with the oncoming arrival of the others on the shuttle, this was going to be a close one. It’s not like we had a big digger stowed away on the shuttle or anything. The Bitter Sea guys would definitely be an asset, but still...
Errok clearly had the same thought I did.
“It’s not enough,” he said, grunting as he lifted a particularly gnarly-looking boulder and heaved it down the side. “Thaleo, go get more of your men. I assume it was mostly women and children foraging in the cave.”
Thaleo didn’t reply. Nor did he stop digging and pulling at the rock.
“Thaleo!” Errok snapped.
Finally, the other Gahn paused.
“I will not leave my people abandoned here even for a moment with you as their only lifeline, Errok.”
Oh, lordy. I’d come into this situation worrying about Errok’s sense of rivalry and pride. But now I had to worry about Thaleo’s getting in the way.
“I can go,” I said, straightening and dusting off my hands on my pants. “I’ve learned enough about flying on Togo. We’re so close to Thaleo’s mountain – I could make it there and pass on the message to recall any warriors who are out hunting or patrolling.”
“No!” Errok hissed. He threw a rock angrily down the incline. It smashed as it went down, creating a terrific crashing sound. “I will not have you alone out here putting yourself in danger. And we cannot go together. I doubt any of Thaleo’s warriors would believe the message if I brought it.” He turned back to Thaleo. “You must do this, Thaleo. It is the only way. You must call your men here.”
Thaleo’s jaw worked as he dislodged a massive rock, sending it tumbling. I could tell he saw our logic, but that he didn’t want to stop working or leave his people. I approached him, stumbling on a loose set of pebbles. Errok grabbed my hand, righting me. With my one hand held by my mate, I placed the other on Thaleo’s straining shoulders. He went utterly still.
“We won’t stop working to help them. I promise you Thaleo. Please... Trust us.”
It was asking a lot of him. Not just to trust me, a literal alien in his world, but also his oldest enemy.
After a long, tense beat, Thaleo took a sharp breath. He fixed Errok with a pointed stare.
“If you do anything dishonourable while I am gone, I will send another arrow through you. And this time, I will kill you.”
I tensed, ready for Errok to get pissed and ruin everything after all.
But instead, he barked out a sharp laugh, wrenching a rock over his head in a dazzling display of brute strength. His fangs gleaming in a wide, wild grin, he snarled, “I would like to see you try.”
