6KIERAN
Kieran stared down the barrel of a plasma pistol and didn't flinch.
Commander Sage Voss stood ten feet away with her weapon aimed directly at his chest. Her finger rested on the trigger. One squeeze and he was dead.
He should be terrified. Should be calculating escape routes. Should be doing anything except standing perfectly still.
But he couldn't look away from her eyes.
They weren't what he'd expected. Not cold. Not hateful. Just tired and human and searching his face like she was trying to solve a puzzle.
She'd drawn faster than him. Moved like liquid lightning. Three years of combat reports hadn't lied about her reflexes.
But she hadn't fired.
That meant something.
Don't move, Kieran said. His voice came out steadier than he felt.
Behind him, he heard voices. His crew emerging from the jungle. Marcus calling his name. Boots on soft earth. People looking for their captain.
Behind Sage, movement in the shadows. Nex soldiers in their distinctive gray uniforms. Also searching. Also armed.
In about ten seconds, both groups would find them standing here like this. Weapons drawn. Enemy commanders facing each other.
And then the shooting would start.
Kieran's mind raced. He could call out. Warn his people. Get backup. Overwhelm Sage's smaller group with numbers.
But that meant more death. More bodies. More people who survived a crash only to die in the jungle.
He was so tired of death.
Sage seemed to read his thoughts. Her weapon didn't waver but something shifted in her expression.
Your people are coming, she said quietly. So are mine. When they see us like this, they'll attack. Probably kill each other. Maybe all of us.
Kieran knew she was right. His crew would open fire the second they saw a Nex commander threatening him. Her soldiers would do the same.
Then lower your weapon, he said.
You first.
They stared at each other across the distance. Both calculating. Both weighing options. Both aware that the next few seconds would determine if anyone survived this jungle.
Sage did something that shocked him.
She lowered her weapon first.
Not all the way. Just enough to point at the ground instead of his chest. Her eyes never left his face.
There's no rescue coming, she said. We need to talk.
Her tone wasn't what Kieran expected. No triumph. No hatred. Just exhaustion and something that sounded uncomfortably like truth.
He should shoot her now. While her weapon was down. While she was vulnerable. Commander Voss had killed thousands of his people. Destroyed entire fleets. Led the attack that murdered his best friend.
Every tactical bone in his body screamed to pull the trigger.
But his hand wouldn't do it.
Because she was right. No rescue was coming. Both their ships had been sabotaged. Both of them had been set up to die.
And standing here in the jungle with blood on his face and his crew dying behind him, Kieran realized something terrible.
He believed her.
Captain, Marcus's voice cut through the trees. Close now. Where are you?
Commander, a different voice called. Nex accent. Also close. Report your position.
Sage's eyes went wide. Not with fear. With urgency.
Make a choice, Hayes. Right now. Do we kill each other or do we survive?
Kieran looked at her. Really looked. Saw the cut above her eye bleeding into her face. Saw the way she favored her left ankle. Saw the exhaustion carved into her features.
She'd crashed just like him. Been betrayed just like him. Lost people just like him.
They were both victims of the same conspiracy.
He lowered his weapon.
Sage's shoulders relaxed slightly. Just a fraction. But enough that Kieran knew she'd been genuinely unsure if he'd shoot.
We talk, he said. But my people see you threatening me, this ends badly.
Same problem my side, Sage replied. They see me with the human captain who destroyed half our fleet, they'll execute you on sight.
Then we need to control the situation before it controls us.
How?
Kieran's mind worked fast. They had maybe thirty seconds before both groups found them. Thirty seconds to prevent a bloodbath.
We walk out together, he said. Side by side. We tell both groups the truth. That we were both set up. Both betrayed. Both targets of the same conspiracy.
Sage's eyebrows rose. You think they'll believe that?
Kieran met her eyes. You think we have a better option?
Behind them, the voices got louder. Footsteps crashing through undergrowth. People calling out. Getting closer.
Sage made a decision. She holstered her weapon completely and stepped forward. Closed the distance between them until she was close enough that Kieran could see flecks of gold in her gray eyes.
If this goes wrong, she said quietly, if your people shoot me, I want you to know something.
What?
I didn't know about Meridian Nine. The civilian settlement. I was told it was a military installation. When I found out the truth after, when I saw the casualty reports, the children.
Her voice broke slightly. Just a crack in the armor. But Kieran heard it.
I would have taken it back if I could, she finished. All of it. I would have destroyed myself to undo that order.
Kieran stared at her. This close, he could see the truth in her face. The genuine regret. The weight she carried.
He'd hated her for six months. Sworn to kill her. Blamed her for Marcus's death.
But Marcus hadn't died on Meridian Nine. That was a lie. A manipulation to fuel his rage.
Everything was a lie.
I believe you, he said.
The words surprised him as much as they seemed to surprise her.
Then Marcus burst through the vegetation, weapon raised. Three other crew members right behind him. They saw Kieran standing next to the enemy commander and their weapons came up immediately.
Sir, get away from her, Marcus shouted.
From the other direction, Nex soldiers emerged. Five of them. Weapons trained on Kieran. A woman with sharp features and intelligence in her eyes took the lead.
Commander Voss, step away from the human.
Both groups. Both armed. Both ready to kill.
Kieran and Sage stood perfectly still between them.
Stand down, Kieran ordered his people. His voice carried authority even covered in blood and exhaustion. That's an order.
Marcus looked at him like he'd lost his mind.
Sir, she's the enemy. She killed thousands of our people.
The Nex officer echoed the sentiment.
Commander, he murdered entire Nex battalions. This is a trap.
Sage's voice cut through the tension like a blade.
Dr. Kross, tell them what you found in the communication logs. Tell them who really set up this battle.
The intelligent-looking woman, apparently Dr. Kross, hesitated. Then pulled out a data pad.
General Hax and Admiral Reeves have been coordinating attacks. Manufacturing escalations. They worked together to position both ships for destruction. The crash wasn't an accident. It was an execution.
Silence fell over both groups.
That's insane, one of the human soldiers said.
Marcus's weapon lowered slightly. His eyes went to Kieran.
Sir, is this true?
Kieran nodded slowly. He gestured to Sage.
Commander Voss and I were both set up. Both betrayed by our own leadership. We're not each other's enemies. We're both victims of the same conspiracy.
The human soldiers looked at each other. Uncertain. Confused.
The Nex soldiers did the same.
Then the jungle around them changed.
The normal sounds, the bird calls and insect clicks, all stopped. Like someone had flipped a switch. The silence was complete and terrifying.
Something was wrong.
Marcus heard it too. His weapon came back up, but not aimed at Sage. Aimed at the jungle.
What is that?
Kieran strained to hear. At first nothing. Then a sound like breathing. Deep and rhythmic. Something massive moving through the undergrowth.
Multiple somethings.
They were surrounded.
Sage grabbed Kieran's arm. Her touch was electric. Her voice urgent.
We need to move. Now. These creatures hunt in packs.
How do you know?
My scouts reported on this planet three years ago. Before the war intensified. The predators here are intelligent and they hunt anything warm-blooded.
The breathing got louder. Closer. Coming from every direction.
Both groups of soldiers backed toward each other. Human and Nex standing together without thinking. Survival instinct overriding training.
Kieran saw them first. Eyes in the shadows. Glowing amber. At least eight pairs. Maybe more.
The creatures were circling them.
Everyone stay calm, Sage said. Her voice was steady. Authoritative. Don't run. Don't shoot. Movement attracts them.
One of the human soldiers, young kid barely twenty, panicked and fired into the jungle. The plasma bolt lit up the trees.
The creatures reacted instantly.
A roar split the air. Not one roar. Multiple roars. From every direction at once. The sound was so loud Kieran felt it in his chest. In his bones.
The jungle exploded with movement.
And the creatures came for them all.