The Soul Eaters (The Thin Hex Line Book 1) by Gwyndolyn Russell (e reader txt) 📕

changes how history is valued. We’ve destroyed our own monuments during war.”

I rolled my eyes. Reaper looked disappointed in me.

With a shake of my head, I put my attention elsewhere. Something I couldn’t see caught Fenris’. After a second, he looked at me. Then back to this tiny space between buildings. I watched with him. A blink and instead of being this near seven foot tall metal monstrosity, Fenris was a wolf. Tall enough to look me in the eye. Ears folded back, tail down. He was onto something.

Something peeked from the shadows. A little hooded head. Then it took off, running down the street at full speed. Someone wearing all black.

Fenris growled for a brief second, the sound rattling the bones in my chest. It got the attention of the others.

“I think that’s our guy!” I said.

“Follow him!” Reaper turned around to wave Mjolnir back over. I took off running after the guy. Fenris was right with me. Well, he was walking. Actually caught up to me and held out a hand to stop me from going further.

If he knew we were chasing him, he would probably just hide. I waited there at the corner for the others to join us and Fenris led the way, walking.

“Wait...is he tracking him?” Sparrow asked.

“I think.” I answered. “He’s a...dog...right? I think. Maybe. Looks like one.”

The man must have seen us when we rounded the next corner. He took off in a hurry, making a beeline for the docks. He looked over his shoulder frequently.

Reaper made a call for Willis to come get us.

"Can we get a beacon on it?" Ruby looked to Reaper.

"If I thought to bring one."

"Good thing I did!" I dug into a pouch on my hip and took off running ahead. The target was already inside a bird shaped ship, he wouldn't see it coming.

I just needed in throwing distance.

The engines were on. I shoved my way through a few ravens that tried to stop me from getting there. Threw the beacon. A palm sized disc with a magnetic hold.

It hit the hull, the door that let the guy on.

The others caught up to me. Reaper grabbed my shoulder.

"What would I do without you, Jack?"

"Probably die." I laughed.

"All right, let's follow him. He may be going to another target."

Just on cue, our shuttle lowered down in front of us. The side hatch swung upwards, and we all piled inside. Willis took off before even shutting the door.

"Did we get any identification?" Reaper asked.

"Couldn't see a face." Sparrow answered.

"I thought I smelled something floral." Mjolnir stated.

Fenris gave a firm nod.

"Floral? Like perfume?" I held onto one of the handlebars at the seats. None of us had bothered to strap in.

"I'm not sure." Mjolnir frowned.

Back on the Syndicate, Willis and Reaper rushed up to the bridge. The rest of us stayed put at the shuttle, with Ruby taking over the pilot seat.

We waited there, filling the empty void of time with small talk. Sparrow brought up the typical question of settling down. Retiring from the military and starting a family. I could see Ruby's face twisting up in fear. He wasn't ready for the thought of that.

My answer and Mjolnir's was just about the same. We didn't really plan to retire. He wanted to start a family, eventually. I never thought about it. I enjoyed fighting too much to bother. The grunt life, while hard, was all I had. Why ruin a good thing? Sparrow, on the other hand, wanted kids. She wanted a family and to have a home on some peaceful, vibrant planet.

Of course, Fenris said nothing. Just stared at each of us. I got a feeling he had no idea what we were talking about. He was studying us just like we were studying him.

"LT?" Sparrow whispered. I barely heard her. "LT?"

Something hefty came to rest on my shoulder.

"Jackal, are you okay?" Mjolnir leaned down to look me in the face.

I blinked. Rubbed my eye.

"You spaced out there, LT." Sparrow hugged her helmet.

Fenris was even looking at me curiously.

I was at a loss for words. I remembered looking at Fenris to see if he would try to join the conversation. That was it. I must have been staring at him. There was something about that strange creature that kept luring me into some kind of trance. A song that I could faintly hear in the back of my mind. Familiar yet unable to remember the words.

I sat down in one seat and sighed.

"Are you feeling okay? You look sick." Sparrow leaned over her lap.

"Yeah. I'll be fine."

"There might be a bug going around. I've heard of some others getting sick."

"Didn't you go down to the core during the radiation leak?" Mjolnir picked at his teeth.

"I was in a suit. Decontaminated, too."

He then pointed to Fenris.

"What about him?"

"He went through it, too."

"That doesn't mean he doesn't have some sort of bacteria we have no immunity to!" Sparrow exclaimed. "He's an alien completely to all of us. We don't know where he's come from, or what he even is."

I sighed. "Fine. I'll get a checkup after this mission if it'll make you feel better. Fenris, you probably should, too. Just to be safe."

THIRTEEN

"Veguria?" Sparrow clutched her helmet. "What in the stars would he want on Veguria? It's mostly barren!"

"Veguria is home to colony Empyree. It's a joint task colony owned by both the Federation and the eldiravan." Mjolnir stated. "There are precious minerals on Veguria that the eldiravan need."

"And the Federation wants to colonize the planet for tourism. So the ravens provide jobs for those that stay, and the Federation brings income from outside." Ruby added.

"All in all, it's another attempt to keep peace between us." Reaper sat back in his seat, taking full advantage of the belt to hold him in place. "Granted, I've heard it's a cold war in the streets. Seems we can't live together well."

"He may be after a new target." Jackal suggested.

"Irzazee suggested that as well." Reaper nodded. "He said the