She shrugged in fake sympathy. "I guess you don't understand the Tuann as well as you thought."
Pallas made a tsking sound. "Unlikely."
He adjusted his own cloak over his sword and sheath, ensuring he’d be able to draw it without a problem.
"What? No hood?" Kira asked snidely.
Finished, Pallas purposely bumped her with his shoulder as he moved past her. "There’s no reason for me to hide my face. I’m not the one they think blew up their moon."
"You always have to have the last word, don’t you?"
Pallas barked out a laugh. "You’re the one still speaking."
Muttering under her breath and unable to argue without proving his point, Kira stomped after him. The Wanderer had better show up soon. She didn’t think this planet was big enough for her and Pallas.
Fifteen
Snow crunched underfoot as Pallas forged the path ahead. Kira and Lathan followed with Graydon guarding their rear.
They hadn’t made it far when the lenacht poked it’s head out of Lathan’s cloak to chirp a greeting at Kira.
She smiled at its antics before running a finger across its brow ridge in a gentle caress it seemed to enjoy. "I take it you'll be joining us for this adventure?"
The lenacht closed its eyes and leaned into Kira's touch. A growling purr rumbled from its throat.
"She likes you," Lathan observed.
"Of course, she does. Kira is a beloved." Pallas stopped and held his hand out to the lenacht. The creature launched off Lathan, gliding the short distance to Pallas and nestling into his arms like she’d done it a thousand times.
"Although you're the lenacht's partner, Kira is her protector. Don't underestimate the Phoenix's effect on this one," Pallas instructed, gentle as he tucked the lenacht into his cloak.
The care he showed reminded Kira of something she'd almost forgotten; once, Pallas had held the kindest soul within the camp. A boy with a compassionate heart that made him a favored target of their masters who'd gone out of their way to break him.
And break him they did.
The first time he'd been forced to take a life he sobbed until he exhausted himself, his eyes swollen half shut, his cheeks wet with tears. He'd refused their captors' orders after that. They made the rest of them watch as they beat Pallas bloody. A warning of what would happen if they stepped out of line.
Pallas, though, was stubborn. It didn't matter what they did to him. He refused to fight under their orders.
So, they beat him some more. And when that didn't work, they assigned him to be the subject of an experiment.
That was when Pallas changed. He was no longer the old Pallas when he finally returned.
Blood no longer bothered him. Killing either.
Too many other of her siblings had self-destructed upon being broken. Unable to cope with their new reality. For Pallas to come out the other end, still alive, if a touch crazy, was something she’d always admired.
"Where is he going?" Pallas asked, pulling Kira out of her memories.
She turned in the direction he indicated to find the J1N motoring away from them, its lights on full illumination.
Kira's shoulders slumped. "Damn it. What does that thing think it’s doing?"
Pallas's snicker followed her as she trudged after the drone. "Best catch him before he goes too far. You wouldn't want to leave your best friend behind. You have a ruse to maintain after all."
And there was the asshole she'd come to know and hate.
Kira didn't go far, only a few steps back along the path they'd trekked before she cupped her hands around her mouth. "Get back here, J1N!"
The drone stopped, swiveling in place as if trying to establish her location.
"That's right. This way," Kira called.
She waved her arms, hoping movement would help the glitchy drone figure out which way to go without her having to walk all the way back to the ship.
The drone veered to the right.
Kira dropped her arms to glare at the J1N. "Don’t make me come over there."
The J1N didn't seem to hear. Or if it did, it failed to recognize the significance of that threat.
It continued bumbling in the direction it had chosen.
Graydon stopped next to her. "Better catch it before it gets lost."
Now there was a thought. Unfortunately, not one she could pursue if she ever wanted to return Jin to his body.
Thankfully, corralling the drone didn't take long.
"Stop wandering off and just follow," Kira ordered after catching him.
"Follow. Roger."
"Not that way." Kira grabbed the J1N when it immediately set off in the wrong direction. "This way."
She steered it back onto the right path before cautiously letting go. To her relief, it stayed on course this time.
Kira trudged after the rest. Pallas and Lathan had already set off again, but Graydon waited for her to catch up. He nodded as she passed him, falling in behind her.
The group set a punishing pace as they moved over the rolling hills near where they’d landed. It wasn't long before Kira found herself wishing for some kind of specialized snow equipment.
Even with Pallas blazing a path, the going was tough with the snow reaching to Kira's thighs in some places.
Ice from last night's storm had created interesting shapes among the branches of the trees. Twisting ropes of icicles bowed the trees, their canopies nearly sweeping the ground from the weight.
It was strangely beautiful. A sight that deserved to be captured and memorialized forever.
The thing Kira was most worried about, however, was the possibility of straying into one of the numerous rivers that riddled Rothchild's surface. There was a reason this planet was referred to as the river world.
Rothchild had no real ocean. Just a series of great lakes and rivers that covered huge swaths of the planet.
Flooding during the rainy season was a nightmare.
For their purposes, though, it was the possibility of one of the rivers partially freezing over that presented the most danger.
If they stepped onto ice that wasn't fully frozen without realizing, they could fall through and drown. Even if they managed to find their way back to the surface, they faced the very real possibility of hypothermia.
Up ahead, Pallas stopped walking. He lifted his forearm, bringing up the map and coordinates Kira had given him. "Something is wrong. We should have been there by now."
Kira caught up, the J1N continuing past. The sound of icicles cracking came as it veered into a tree.
Graydon lifted his eyebrows at Kira as he and Lathan joined them.
"Are you sure what you gave me is right?" Pallas asked.
"Like I told you—the blast changed the moon's orbit. It affected the planet's magnetic field. It'll throw off any navigation you have."
She was starting to regret not allowing Selene to accompany her on this mission. Anything would have been better than dealing with Pallas.