Eryx is part of a team of scientists charged with monitoring and protecting relocated animals on a privately owned planet. When sensors indicate poachers, Eryx leaves base to confront them, only to lose his way in a sudden snow. After trudging to a nearby observation station for shelter, he comes across an unexpected intruder.<br><br>Smuggler Leander flies an old, sometimes unreliable ship. When the engine starts to fail, he attempts to set down on the nearest planet where he’s stashed supplies, but his descent turns into a crash, and he’s forced to take shelter wherever he can.<br><br>The two can’t possibly trust each other, but storm projections show they’ll be stuck together for days. Worse, the poachers aren’t letting a little inclement weather stop them, and they’re armed and ready to kill. Can Leander and Eryx put aside their differences and save the animals -- and themselves -- before something disastrous happens?

Under Snow and Stars

The smuggler checked, nodded. “Probably where their ship set down, too.”


“Enough to postpone them, or permanently?”


“Doesn’t matter to me,” said Eryx, shrugging.


“There’s probably some essential parts there I could use. Requires hauling ass through the storm, though.”


“Which will be less of a problem with GPS back online. And you’ll have me. Pairs aren’t so dangerous.”


But they were still a risk. There was a reason Tina called for lockdown in this sort of shit, after all. But if Leander understood that, he said nothing.


“All right.” Leander sat next to Eryx, close enough they were touching. Eryx found he liked that. “There’s bound to be a couple left behind to guard their ship. If we want to get there, we’ll have to deal with them. Then there’s the question of how many others—just these two out here stealing leopards, or more? Where are you going?”


“I’m going to calculate tranq doses for humans,” said Eryx.


Chapter 22