Neverwylde: The Rim of the World, #5

By Linda Mooney

Finding themselves on yet another new part of the half-world, Kyber and the crew need to escape quickly or risk death, but he can’t find it in himself to care anymore. His Kelen is gone.  

The group is tired, both Terrans and Seneecians. Tired of fighting. Tired of running. Tired of struggling to survive. They have nothing left to give. But if there’s even the tiniest of chances that Kelen is still alive, Kyber will stop at nothing to find her.  

Giving up hope on ever escaping, the crew decides on a new strategy—survive, learn as much as they can, and hopefully help anyone who may crash there in the future. With new friends and allies, and new information, there just may be hope yet. 

The adventure is almost over…

• Language: English
• Publisher: Linda Mooney
• Release date: Jan 19, 2017
• ISBN: 9781941321676

Linda Mooney

Linda loves to write sensuously erotic romance with a fantasy, paranormal, or science fiction flair. Her technique is often described as being as visual as a motion picture or graphic novel. A wife, mother, grandmother, and retired Kindergarten and music teacher, she lives in a small south Texas town near the Gulf coast where she delves into other worlds filled with daring exploits, adventure, and intense love. She has numerous best sellers, including 10 consecutive #1s. In 2009, she was named Whiskey Creek Press Torrid's Author of the Year, and her book My Strength, My Power, My Love was named the 2009 WCPT Book of the Year. In 2011, her book Lord of Thunder was named the Epic Ebook "Eppie" Award Winner for Best Erotic Sci-Fi Romance. In addition, she write naughty erotic romances under the name of Carolyn Gregg, and horror under the pseudonym of Gail Smith. For more information about Linda Mooney books and titles, and to sign up for her newsletter, please visit her website. http://www.LindaMooney.com

Book preview

Chapter 1

Furries

Kelen Chambliss could go no further. She’d barely managed to half-drag, half-crawl three meters across the mustard yellow floor before her body gave up and she collapsed. Collapsed and then drifted into unconsciousness.

But rest was elusive. Monsters reared their head, their faceless bodies rampaging from the dark fog of her subconscious. Light flashes the color of blood erupted behind her eyelids, like blaster fire. She tried to avoid being hit, being grabbed, being bitten, but her muscles refused to obey. She couldn’t even lift her arms to fend off her attackers. It was all she could do to whine softly in protest.

The cold permeated the room. The enormous hole in the wall caused by the ice quake allowed the freezing winds to blow through and cover everything in minute flakes of snow. Flakes that rapidly melted to form thin sheets of ice.

At first she couldn’t stop shivering. Then, after a while, the cold no longer affected her. She was numb, unable to feel anything. Not even the floor beneath her body, and she realized she was becoming hypothermic. Worse, she was growing increasingly drowsy.

I am going to die now. I’m going to freeze to death. Kyber…

A tear worked its way beneath her eyelid and began to solidify, sealing her eye shut. Taking a shuddering breath, she tried to say his name, the name of her love. The name of the creature who had captured her heart. Who tried to protect her with his own life.

She could no longer move her lips.

She was tired. Tired of running. Tired of fighting for survival. Tired of this never-ending struggle to find food and water and a safe place to rest.

Her throat was dry. Her stomach was empty. None of it mattered anymore. If there was anything to be grateful for, it was that freezing didn’t hurt. Her wounded hand Kyber had punctured with his talons no longer pained her. Her leg, with its multitude of clicker bites, didn’t ache. Her body was filled with a lassitude, promising her first long and blissful sleep since her ship had crash-landed on this planet. A sleep without the fear of something attacking.

Her mind began to drift. It took effort to bring Kyber’s face into view. His beautiful Seneecian features, covered with fine black fur that was slightly curly. His warm gaze. The way the corners of his mouth quirked upward when he was amused, revealing the long canine-like teeth.

Ky…ber…

A scream. High-pitched. Distant. Small.

A small scream?

Scuffling. Grunts. Deep grunts. More little screams.

She peeled her eyes open and tried to focus on the movement several meters away. A figure came into view. Shock went through her when she finally recognized one of Hoov’s people. The giant mantis-like alien was moving. Writhing. Fighting off…

Kelen blinked, unable to believe what she was seeing. Little creatures. Little fuzzy creatures the color of honey. They were swarming the big alien.

No, they were trying to swarm the Hoov creature, biting the big alien until it bled blue-black blood, but they weren’t being successful. The Hoov alien snapped at them. Those furry creatures it managed to grab in its mouth it swallowed, alive and whole. It held more of the little fuzzies in its clawed grasp, squeezing its attackers until they burst. The little screams came from the honey-gold furries as they died.

The Hoov creature screeched when a furry thing managed to reach the back of its neck. The insect-like alien threw an appendage behind its head in an attempt to get at the little being. In the process, it turned. The big creature paused in shock when it spotted her lying on the floor. Opening its mouth, it let out a loud howl and started toward her.

No!

Somehow she managed to call out. Somehow her hands rose up as if to ward off the creature who had every intent of killing her and eating her alive, the way it had killed and eaten the big furry thing up in the temple. The way it had killed and eaten Tojun.

Something bumped her nose. Kelen stared in groggy amazement at the blaster clutched in her undamaged hand.

The creature hurried toward her, no longer mindful of the little things that continued to cling to it. That continued to fight it, to bite it, and to overcome it.

Her vision fogged over, but the Hoov creature loomed before her like a rising wall, blocking out the light. Years ago, when she was a cadet in the space military, she’d been teased about her low scores on the gun range. The term couldn’t hit the broad side of a barn had been frequently thrown at her, until she buckled down and perfected her marksmanship. This creature was bigger than a barn, and closer. And there was no way she was going to let it feast on her.

Kelen fired, holding down the firing button. The weapon spewed a wide stream of energy. It caught the Hoov creature at chest level. The creature halted in shock, its mouth opened but no further sound came out. Within seconds the alien exploded, spraying body parts and gore in all directions. Noxious fluid spewed over her. The furry creatures which had been clinging to it stopped moving.

She tried to see if any other of the big aliens were in the room, but things were getting darker. And colder. If more came to attack the fuzzies, there would be no way she could defend herself against them or the furry things. Not again. Not anymore.

She couldn’t feel her hand. Her fingers were numb. The blaster fell onto the floor with a rattle. Closing her eyes, Kelen tilted her head to the side and rested her cheek on the icy floor. With the Hoov creature dead, she was left at the mercy of the furries.

Death by furries.

It could almost be funny if she wasn’t so damn tired. And freezing to death.

Chapter 2

Five

Warmth.

She was warm.

She also felt a heaviness, as if she’d been covered with a large and bulky blanket.

Gradually, Kelen took stock of herself as she regained consciousness. She was lying on her stomach, her left cheek making contact with the floor. Other than that, she couldn’t feel a thing. She was numb, and neither her toes nor her fingers responded when she willed them to flex and move.

She heard a soft, almost purring sound, and something moved close to her head. Her body immediately went on alert and her eyes flew open as she struggled to move away. But instead of finding a clicker or some other dangerous creature prepared to attack her, one of the tiny yellow furries sat on its haunches, staring at her.

Kelen blinked.

The furry blinked. Its horizontal row of three eyes each moved independently as it watched her, waiting for her next move. Kelen noticed the thing’s six furry legs, three on each side of its tufted body. With a few exceptions, to her it resembled an alien version of a guinea pig.

Without the ears. Or the bunny nose.

The furry scratched the side of its face. The spread of needle-thin claws at the end of the appendage looked very capable of helping the creature keep an even footing across the slick floor. Or icy floor.

Something on her shoulder moved. A moment later, another furry slid off of her and waddled away, aiming for one of the mustard-yellow squares a few meters away. Kelen watched as it disappeared inside the cube without any sign of a doorway opening for it.

Like the holographic doorways in the tunnel.

Realization abruptly hit her and she gasped. The furry had been lying on her.

That’s not a blanket covering you, Chambliss! It’s those things!

Taking care not to jostle the creatures, she tried to rise, but her arms refused to obey. Her entire body remained prone, sluggish.

She continued to watch the furry apparently standing or sitting guard less than a meter away. It didn’t appear to be overly concerned about the fact that she was awake.

Another furry rolled off of her. This time she felt its warm little body crawl over her arm where it lay against her side, but it disappeared in a direction she couldn’t follow. She was unable to turn her head.

A third furry appeared in her range of vision and went over to the furry guarding her. This one moved as if it had a limp. The two seemed to converse, then the third one turned, perhaps to leave, and that’s when she saw it was missing a middle leg. The five-legged furry waddled away.

A couple of minutes later, to her surprise, the injured furry returned. The sides of its face looked swollen as it drew closer to her face. It stopped so close to her nose, she could smell it. Surprisingly, it gave off a cinnamon-like odor.

The creature reached over and laid a paw on the corner of her mouth. Then it mewed at her. Kelen frowned, uncomprehending. The thing patted her mouth again, giving a soft whine. Realizing it wanted her to open her lips, Kelen managed to oblige, although it felt like she was trying to pry apart an iron trap.

The moment her mouth opened, the furry leaned over and spat into it. Kelen immediately clamped her lips shut. Fear rushed through her until her tongue met the moisture.

Water. The creature had given her water.

She swallowed. The slightly cool liquid felt wonderful to her parched throat.

The furry continued to watch her. Five, as she now thought of the fuzzy with the missing limb, remained next to her face. It also waited to see what her next reaction would be.

Kelen opened her mouth.

Five gave a little squeak and hobbled out of sight. Seconds later, another fuzzy with bulging cheeks approached and spat water into her mouth. Then