Pablo and Lynn finished piking a hellkite to death when the shock wave erupted across the battlefield. Dust, rocks, and bodies exploded everywhere as the colossal crawler tipped end-over-end. He hit the dirt, taking Lynn with him, and prayed. Prayed for themselves. Prayed for their friends. And prayed for—

Rayne skidded by across the valley floor, utterly coated in dust and blood. Human crimson and Icarean cerulean. He blinked at her as she stood with a fierce twirl of Night Killer and stomped by like a soldier determined to complete her mission. With a shining smile, she said, “Be careful, you two. I plan on being a bridesmaid.” She blasted off into the sky to meet Nox in the middle.

“Wow,” Lynn muttered.

“Yea…” Pablo agreed. What a great idea.

Maybe four feet from them, two pulverized Icari dressed in enemy armor laid unmoving. He shared a glance with Lynn, and they approached the bodies. He stared. This was the exact opportunity he hoped for in this fight. “Remember what we talked about?”

“I do.”

They dug inside the chest of the healing and groaning monsters. His fingers slipped around the brain. Blue blood gushed as he pried into the sac containing the nacre. She held hers out first. “Should we wash them off or something?”

He shook his head, “I don’t think it matters.” She laughed, and he glanced at her with a raised eyebrow, “What is it?”

“Four months ago, this would be completely off the table for you.” Lynn looked him once over before giving him the “let’s find somewhere to be alone” smile. “Combat-surgeon-Pablo is so sexy.”

He raised his nacre. “I’ll toast to that.”

She tapped hers to his. “Bottoms up!”

They swallowed their nacres.

The ashen-metallic taste of the blood combined with the size of the nacre in his throat gagged Pablo. He spit the thing back up in his hand.

Lynn was midway through drinking from her canteen and spat all the water out as she laughed.

Fortunately, he was secure enough to find the humor in it when she handed the water to him. “Here.”

He thanked her with eyes full of moisture and a convulsing throat. He croaked, “It’s not as easy as I thought.”

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“No, it’s not. Luckily, I’ve been taking pointers from Andrew on how to reduce my gag reflex.” She grinned at him when he spit the water out everywhere.

“Should I send him flowers?”

“A gift basket wouldn’t hurt. Now take your medicine.”

Swallow this first, then ask her. Pablo stared at the pearl in his palm and—

One of the enemy crawlers walked up on them. Six legs and made from the same material as their shields, they were supposedly indestructible. He tucked the nacre in his pocket and patted Lynn on the shoulder. “Hey, I got an idea.”

She looked from him to the vehicle and shook her head. “Oh, are you serious?!”

He grinned at her. “C’mon, it’ll be fun.”

“I feel you. Got any ideas?” She squared off with the machine like she planned to take it all on her own.

“You got any bombs?”

She snapped her fingers as if to summon a light bulb over her head. “Yes, but I have a better idea. Don’t follow and don’t worry about me.” She punctuated each command with a pointed finger.

Pablo hated when she said things like that. It meant she planned to risk herself. Fuck the battle. He pulled her to him and kissed her with every promise he ever made. When he tore away, she did the cute thing where her eyes stay closed. “Don’t. Die.”

“Don’t plan to. And I want another one of those when I impress the hell out of you.”

He prayed under his breath, “Better come back for another one.”

Lynn shouted with her twisted hair swaying from the sass, “Hey motherfucking blood suckers!”

And Pablo’s blood pressure dropped.

She withdrew a four-inch blade and sliced it across her palm without so much as a wince. Holding it high in the air, she taunted, “Come and get it!”

He squinted to see—Yup. Her nacre healed it before she even took off running into the trees. The crawler pursued, knocking over pines with ease. Pablo ran after to keep her in his sights. No losing her. Never lose her. She leapt the gap beyond a fallen tree before he realized her plan. The crawler followed over the log, only to blunder and tumble into a massive pit filled with phosphorescent electricity.

X arrived at the triggering of his web. The jellyfish man secreted a fluid into the slide-hatch while the Icarean pilot scratched and clawed to escape. He screamed long ragged wails until he no longer drew air. With his eyes rolled back into his head, X slurped and consumed the liquid, jellied Icarus and all.

Pablo’s eyes felt wider than his head, but he still nodded his gratitude. “Thanks, man.”

The Luk smiled and spoke in a whisper, “The pleasure is all mine. I was getting peckish with the waiting.”

“Is it safe to go in now?” Lynn pointed to the crawler.

“Well, yea, but you need a—”

She slid into the chute-hatch and messed with the controls. After some clumsy, untried movements, she finally stuttered the thing up the pit wall. Through the nacre glass, she shouted, “Need a lift?!”

He glanced at X with a smooth smile. “I need you to witness something for me.”

“Sure. Sure.” The jellyfish man shook his head in astonishment. As Pablo climbed onto the machine, X whispered, “You humans are so impressive.”

With everything in him and everything he wanted to be, Pablo called to Lynn, “Marry me?”

She snapped around to him with her mouth gaping open. X clapped with a strange trill as he cheered for them. She climbed halfway out of the hatch and snatched him to her by his shirt. “Yes.”

Pablo smiled as she drew him to her lips. He loved her.

They broke apart with his grin so wide it hurt his jaw. She shot him a mischievous smirk as she slid down the chute. “Now let’s be heroes!”

Next stop. Tantamount.