Cautious Surrender

by C. L. Scholey

  A large buzzing noise captured their attention and when Adan looked skyward, she ducked behind Blu. Eight-inch-high flying wasp-spiders circled them. Adan had spent five years in the icy snow when Earth fell apart, she wasn’t used to bugs, especially two of the worst bugs she could imagine rolled into the same being. Large wings flapped while the stinger on the ass of the eight-legged, eight-eyed creature tried to sting Blu. He crushed it in one hand. Adan grimaced when he shook the mess from his hand and the squashed bug splatted to the ground. The swarm took off.

  “Can’t imagine the size of an EpiPen you’d need here,” Adan whispered.

  Blu snatched her off her feet and jumped. Adan’s wide gaze flew over his shoulder. A single eye appeared on the ground, blinked and then closed. The image of the crushed creature being eaten alive when they first landed came to mind.

  “I feel a nervous breakdown coming on,” Adan muttered.

  “Don’t touch anything unless I say so, and don’t eat anything unless I give it to you,” Blu cautioned.

  “Ya think?”

  Adan stiffened in Blu’s arms. Behind the hunter green short trees a ball of long fur rose and fell caterpillar style. It was six feet high and at least seven feet in length. She caught fleeting images as it rolled its way through the jungle setting.

  Biggest fucking bug ever.

  Blu set her back on her feet. The green gasses were high in the sky, rolling amidst the cloud sun rays. The air was earthy with a strange taste filling her nostrils and settling on her tongue. Mothballs were more pleasant. The day was brighter than yesterday and warmer. Not humid or stifling but Adan felt comfortable in her short clothing of make-shift t-shirt with her skin vest. The vest was serviceable, from her igloo days, and she refused to part with it. She also sported small tight black shorts. The material was the same as what Blu wore, only smaller to fit her, and Blu never wore a shirt. His replicator had offered the material and Adan worked diligently to make changes until she was satisfied, returning the clothing to the replicator with instructions. On her feet she wore moccasins a replicator had made her on the ship. They were fashioned in the design she originally wore when she first boarded the Zargonnii vessel only lighter.

  Like Blu’s clothing, Adan’s were fireproof and virtually indestructible—unlike Adan and her vest. Each change to the cloth had to be reloaded into the replicator with instructions on what to make shorter or longer or wider or slimmer. The replicator was used to huge-ass warriors, not smaller females. Blu complained she would short circuit the device. Her shirt hung well below her ass, the shorts stopped just at her knees. Blu indicated Zargonnii females went nude during the Holiday. A clothed female was an odd sight to a warrior. Adan told him on the ship she wasn’t on display. The warriors would have to get used to her and her clothes.

  Her tummy rumbled reminding Adan it had been a while since she had eaten anything substantial. When the Gorgano attacked, she and Blu were just entering the eating hall. She watched horrified as a human woman died, simply dropping to the ground with no visible wound, and Bethany fought the Gorgano who mind-battled. Blu had warned Adan of the Gorgano, creatures who wanted all humans dead, especially females. Once subject to the Gorgano they had a strange effect on humans. For a moment on the Zargonnii vessel, the creature entered Adan’s mind but Bethany had been stronger, diverting the pain away. Suddenly Adan had felt the Gorgano’s agony and Bethany’s triumph as she killed the creature. Adan spoke Blu’s language with ease now, whereas before she struggled daily with the strange growls and grunts.

  Blu stopped at a wide tree, numerous multi-colored objects grew within the umbrella branches. Blu reached for something orange and took a small bite. A tiny fluff of moving fur on a branch drew Adan closer, leaving Blu’s side. A small furry golden creature less than the size of a chipmunk gazed at her with wide adoring pink eyes. Teeny rounded ears bent to wave at her. A tiny black nose scrunched. The small mouth flicked out a red tongue in the cutest fashion. Within seconds Adan was smitten with the ‘aw’ factor.

  “Hello. Oh my gosh you look like Gizmo except you’re so tiny.”

  Adan had never seen anything so adorable. She ran the back of her hand down its silky soft furry back and smiled when the creature purred. Her baby finger tickled it under the chin and Adan smiled brightly when it twittered as though ticklish, stretching its neck for more. Adan held out her hand and the little being settled onto her palm. Blu approached her and held out the orange globe.

  “I told you not to wander off. Even a few feet can be dangerous, so stay close. Here, this is edible, in fact all of these fruits are edible,” Blu said.

  Adan looked up at the tree. It was pretty and full of wonders. “But there’s so many, so much of a variety. Everything is different colors.”

  “Yes and other buds are forming; it must grow different fruits and vegetables all year long.”

  “Amazing.”

  “What are you holding?”

  Adan held up the golden creature. “Isn’t this the sweetest thing? So tiny and helpless and adorable.”

  “Put it back.”

  “Aw, Blu,” she lifted one of the creature’s paws and made a motion to whack at him. “Grr, I’m so spooky I eat Zargonnii warriors for breakfast,” she said in a silly voice.

  “Adan.”

  Adan took a bite of the fruit; it was sweet and moist and melted in her mouth. She offered a small piece to the creature.

  “Here, baby. It’s good.”

  “Adan, I mean it.”

  The tiny being sniffed the food and took a few bites. It settled in her hand and fell asleep.

  “Please, Blu, let me keep it.”

  “I have enough to deal with keeping you and I alive.”

  “Precious won’t be any problem.”

  “Precious?”

  “It’s her name. Doesn’t she look like a Precious?”

  “You expect a kick ass warrior to have an animal named Precious? No way. I’d kill me myself from embarrassment. Put it back.”

  “But.”

  “Back.” Blu sharply pointed to the tree.

  Adan scowled, the little thing was too helpless on its own; she turned and cupped her hand onto the branch while ducking the creature behind her back until Blu wasn’t looking. They started walking; both Blu and Adan ate a number of the fruits. Adan tried to open the green fruit Blu had given her but it was almost impossible, she wouldn’t ask for his help, she whacked it on a rock opening a tiny hole, green liquid oozed out. Adan licked at the substance and made a face; it wasn’t pleasant and as disgusting as it looked, she dropped it. The less she needed his help the better. One of Blu’s pet peeves seemed to be she was helpless, maybe if she wasn’t, he wouldn’t worry as much. The orange fruit he had already opened was the best.

  Her hand grew sticky from the food. Adan was wondering what to put her little pet in; she couldn’t hold it all the time. Blu would eventually notice her crooning and fussing with it. What would it hurt to keep it? It was harmless and the planet was awful. Something so sweet shouldn’t be left alone. It was awake and gazing at her in the most precious fashion her heart melted. Adan had always wanted another pet. She’d had a dog as a child but it wasn’t really hers; it belonged to her grandparents. When Earth died, there was no way she could keep a pet alive.

  Along the way, different vegetation loomed. Some leaves were softer than others. Her hand trailed over the tips until she came to a plant that felt silky soft. She decided she could line a pocket in her vest and let the baby sleep. It yawned tiredly. Adan was about to set the being on a small green leaf in her pocket when a hideous sound came screaming at them from the bush. Adan screamed, Precious screamed in a teeny voice. Blu was suddenly battling a creature from hell.

  A pitch black moving mass of fur and yellow teeth attacked. Adan curled her body around the golden creature trying to calm its pitiful cries. The little being couldn’t be consoled. The monster scratched at Blu who deflected the blows. The long hair on the creature�
�s face waved, exposing beady black eyes. The creature was upright on hind legs as it battled. It was taller than Adan, thinner than Blu. Huge, rounded floppy ears rose and fell when Blu smashed it in the face with his fist. Out of the foliage came another menace. Adan gaped in horror as a hideous six-foot-four brown dirt-colored monster covered in foot-long pointed quills threw itself into the fray.

  Blu was soon covered in quills, the black creature backed off. It wailed pitifully while pulling at the one quill in its fur. Adan didn’t know what to do when the quill creature faced off with Blu.

  “Why do you attack this poor creature?” the quill being demanded, his tone was guttural, deep and creepy. Adan was surprised it spoke Zargonnii.

  “It attacked us first,” Blu said and growled deep within his chest. He flexed his muscles and the quills fell to the ground leaving no marks.

  “Impossible. These creatures are harmless.”

  “Um, excuse me.” Adan began to rise from the ground. “It did attack us first.”

  The quill being sized her up and took a deep breath. The quills vanished. The alien was breathtaking and wildly weird at the same time. He was bald, brownish to the point to say he was tanned wasn’t true, the color was different and earthy. Light green eyes flickered as strangely as the gas overhead. Tattoos covered his muscular body without making any picture or real design. When he pointed a finger at Adan, she saw huge hands with the same eerie gas covering where fingernails would sit.

  “A thief,” the being spat.

  “I didn’t steal anything,” Adan cried out.

  “No wonder the mother attacked. You stole its baby.”

  Adan looked at the sweet little creature in her hands. Tiny tears trailed down its fine downy face.

  “That’s this cute little thing’s mother?” Adan was incredulous.

  The quill creature growled and strode forward. Blu grabbed him and threw him so far the being went sailing as it turned back into the quill creature. Adan blinked rapidly. The strength it would have taken to send such a powerful monster that far was phenomenal. Blu took the golden baby and handed it to its mother. The baby cooed and smiled while its mother nuzzled it with a tiny black nose amidst the furry face and settled it under her furs, hiding it. Adan saw at least three more of the babies as they stuck their heads out of a pocket sized pouch in the fur. Blu grabbed Adan’s hand and pulled her away.

  “I told you not to touch anything, and I know I told you to put it back,” Blu grouched.

  “That was that cute little thing’s mother?”

  “Apparently. And now the damned assassins are aware of us.”

  “Maybe you should have thrown him farther.”

  “Maybe you should listen to me.”

  “Are you going to be bossy on your planet too?”

  “I’m going to get you a pet toff, and when I tell you to stay put he’ll sit on you because it will be three times your size. And it sure as hell won’t be called Precious. You wandered away from me at the tree. That assassin could have been close. No more wandering.”

  Blu dragged her behind him at a good pace until Adan was panting. The foliage was dismal and unimpressive. Boring, the foliage was boring. At one point Blu ducked them behind a moss-covered log and Adan watched with amazement as numerous creatures in varying forms picked fruit from another full and colorful tree.

  “Ugly, uglier, ugliest, and plain fucking uuugllyy,” Adan whispered as she listed off the creatures.

  Blu’s lips remained in a fine line as he urged her to stay close to the ground while they moved off. Hours must have passed. Blu was annoyed with her and ignored her questions until she remained silent. Adan’s throat was parched; she was exhausted and in need of a rest. Blu was being unreasonable. So she had kept the pet, it looked like it was alone and needed help. Nothing bad happened. Finally, she yanked her hand from Blu’s and plopped onto the ground.

  “Five minutes, okay? Five fucking minutes.” Adan gasped.

  Blu looked around with apprehension. “We don’t have five minutes.”

  “What’s your problem? You haven’t said a word in hours.”

  “I think we’re being followed.”

  The quill creature promptly dropped on the ground between where Adan sat and Blu stood. His quills were gone, but he looked no less deadly.

  “This being would be dead before you could get close,” the creature warned Blu when he moved to retrieve Adan.

  Blu stepped back. “You speak Zargonnii so you know what kind of warrior I am,” Blu threatened. “Merciless when pissed.”

  “I’m curious,” the being said, shrugged and added, “and bored as shit. I won’t harm it if you stay where you are.”

  The alien lifted Adan to her feet, keeping a hand wrapped around her upper arm. He sniffed her; she glared at him unimpressed and slapped him. His gassy gaze seemed surprised. Closer, he looked bigger but Blu was near; she wasn’t afraid but her annoyance was growing. Adan was hot and sweaty and stunk and here was this creature acting like a dog with a butt to smell. He sniffed her again and again Adan slapped his face. His high strong cheek bones hurt her hand, but he didn’t flinch and she left no mark.

  “That’s it?” the creature said to Blu. “That’s the extent of its strength?”

  Blu looked uncomfortable. “She could question you to death,” he grumbled.

  “What are you?” the being softly asked Adan.

  For a second, she was startled. He spoke a very odd old language. It was apparent he didn’t expect her to answer. She was so close she could see what she had thought were tattoos weren’t tattoos at all but tiny holes covering his body, little pin pricks. He smelled like the planet, earthy and untamed. He was solid muscle and wore only a fur wrap low around his hips.

  “I’m human, Tarzan, ungawa,” she said in his language.

  The creature jerked and his hand tightened. “A spy.”

  “Seriously, dude, look at me. Do I look like a spy?”

  A single quill protruded from the creature causing Blu to growl sharply. “If you kill her, not only will you die but the Zargonnii and Castians will wage war on assassins who destroy helpless human females.”

  “Strong words, Zargonnii.”

  “True words.”

  The creature released Adan and took a step back. “I battle enough. I have no need to war with Zargonnii or Castians. I am called Veikko. I am head assassin. Your disturbance has been felt. I’m sizing up your threat.”

  “We are headed to main camp to your overseers. They will open their doors for us,” Blu said.

  “Don’t be so sure. My assassins grow restless. There have been few jobs as of late. It would appear a being called a Gorgano is destroying many planets.”

  “The Gorgano destroyed my Zargonnii vessel with the help of rogue Tonans,” Blu said.

  Veikko let Adan return to Blu’s side. “Tonans have no mercy. I battled one once. We fought for hours on a different planet until the sun fell, eventually his shield dropped and I killed him. My quills seem to have no effect on you, Zargonnii.” He raised a dark brown eyebrow in question.

  “Blu, and this is Adan. She’s mine and I’ll kill anyone who tries to harm her. Tonans need constant sun or their shield weakens. Tell your cutthroats to leave us in peace and we will leave as soon as we can,” Blu said.

  Veikko smiled. “Your little female Adan is a novelty here. You have nothing to fear from male warriors; at least they won’t kill her. Our females on the other hand will kill their own children if they prove to be weak.”

  “That’s disgusting,” Adan raged.

  “Better their mothers end them in a merciful way then to end up someone’s lunch. Children are a rarity on this planet. I’ve only ever seen two. If a female allows her child to live, she hides it until it is of an age to be released from the prison it is held in, learning to survive over years of hard sometimes brutal training.”

  “But to kill your own child,” Adan said and shuddered. She hated these aliens already.


  “If a child has no way to defend itself, it would be ripped to shreds,” Veikko said snarling.

  “A parent defends it,” Adan yelled back.

  “And when the parent dies?”

  “By then it should be old enough…”

  “Age has nothing to do with survival on this planet. It’s skill. Keeping a child alive until adulthood is demanding. If the mother is chosen for an assignment, she must go. She’s an assassin first.” Veikko turned back into a quill creature. The quills rolled across his body at intervals, his hands then arms, traveling and disappearing and reappearing. Adan was mesmerized by his glowing eyes. “One touch of a quill and you would be paralyzed. If I grabbed your hand and released the toxins from my nails into you, you would be able to feel everything done to you and not be able to move or blink or scream.”

  “I’m not afraid of you.” Adan lifted her chin.

  “Then you are a fool. Not all assassins look like me. Some are so frightening they would make your little body tremble; freezing you to the spot you would die in. Some can peel the flesh from your bones with a simple gaze. Others move so quickly you would be sliced into a million pieces before hitting the dirt.”

  “Enough,” Blu bellowed. “Leave her be and let us pass. I need to find shelter for the night away from the gas toxins.”

  Adan gazed up at the sky, the gas had lowered so much if Blu reached up he could touch it. Her fearful gaze went to Blu; it crept up so quietly, this monster. The toxins burned. Her small breaths of the substance made her want to cry before. She had to be strong. Adan knew Blu cared for her, but a warrior needed a female with strength. Since she wasn’t physically strong compared to him, she needed to be strong willed.

  “I smell your fear,” Veikko said to her.

  Ass-hat! So much for strength, wonder if I strap two whole bars of deodorant under each pit if it would help.

  “I’m not afraid,” she repeated and straightened her shoulders. “I’m a little, only a wee bit, concerned.”

  “I’m only a wee bit deadly,” Veikko replied.

  He was mocking her but she didn’t rise to the bait. Blu wasted no time pulling her into his arms. Adan was grateful; she buried her face into his furry chest and concentrated on small breaths.