by Linda Mooney
He touched the elongated tusks jutting from his lower jaw. His hand felt their hardness, and his mouth was aware of his touch. His nose had flattened and retreated, his brows had deepened into carved ridges, and his ears had become pointed protuberances at the top of his bald skull. The resulting mask was both intimidating and horrific.
His fingers roved across his chest until they encountered the marks left by the man’s strange sword. Was it his imagination, or did his skin feel dry and crumbly? He picked at one of the depressions, and bits fell away. Oddly, there was no pain, but he did feel…
Garenth blinked. He couldn’t fathom the sensation. It had appeared some time ago, and had been gradually increasing in persistence, but he had yet to discern what it was, or what it meant.
The only thing in the shiny surface that remained of himself were the eyes. Those had not changed. But everything else had.
He lifted his wings, stretching them outward. They weren’t feathered. They were skin covered with the thinnest sheets of whatever brownish-gray, rock-like substance encased the whole of his body.
He re-examined his talons. The thick, curved nails were identical on both his hands and feet, and capable of penetrating this place’s thin wooden doors with ease.
He walked out of the little room, into the room that contained the bed that smelled of Brielle. Only of Brielle. There was no other scent in these rooms, which told him that if there was a man in her life, he did not reside here. Nor did he spend the night.
He went into the room where he’d seen her eating. He’d watched as she opened several doors, including one to a large container that exuded cold. Intrigued, he opened every one of them to examine what was inside, and discovered dishes and other oddly-shaped items. What fascinated him the most were the cup-like ones that were as clear as water yet solid and strong, much like the magic see-through stones in the wall that allowed him to look out over the city.
Sighing, he returned to the bedding room to investigate what he could. In here he found clothing and many items he could neither identify nor figure out what they were for. However, he was rather astonished to find a thick phallus tucked inside one drawer in the table beside her bed. The fact that such a beautiful and daunting woman would have a need for one surprised him. It also further strengthened his belief that there was no man currently in her life.
Why did that please him?
When he was done checking every possible nook and cranny, he crawled outside onto the ladder to perch on the edge to watch the sun god ride across the sky. He could stay here for hours without growing bored. There was too much to see and hear, and the smells wafting up to him piqued his interest. Some of them were rank, stinging his nostrils, but others reminded him of…of…
Food.
His stomach clenched, surprising him. He was hungry. He was feeling hunger pangs?
What is happening to me? Why am I feeling this way?
It had to be because of the mother idol. He was being punished for losing the mother idol.
He stared out at the distant glitter of water. What had Minbar said to him before he lost consciousness?
“As long as you retain possession of the vial I’ve placed in your hand, you will live.”
You will live.
I no longer have possession, which means I will die. I am dying now.
For some reason, knowing his life was going to come to a close did not frighten him.
Chapter 19
Acceptance
“Garenth?” Brielle stepped inside her apartment and glanced around the empty living area. Closing the door behind her, she placed her purse and the bag onto the bar that separated the small kitchen from the rest of the area and walked into the bedroom. Not seeing him there, a moment of fear went through her until she caught movement outside the open window. Smiling, she went over and peered outside onto the fire escape. Garenth sat, posed, on the edge. The man creature looked like a giant sculpture guarding the narrow staircase and walkway.
“Garenth? Have you been outside the whole time I’ve been away?”
He turned around to give her a confused look, reminding her she didn’t have her phone with her. Brielle quickly returned to the front room to retrieve it. When she turned around, Garenth had followed her inside. She started to ask him her question again when he stopped and sniffed. Slowly, he made his way over to the bar where she’d set her package.
“I thought you might be hungry, so I brought you some roasted chicken. I don’t know if you can eat it, but I couldn’t think of anything else you might want.”
She opened the bag to withdraw the Styrofoam container that held the half chicken. Garenth remained standing by the bar, his gaze intent on what she was doing. Pushing it toward him, she opened the box.
He glanced at her. “Eat?”
“Yeah.”
He reached in and pulled the skin from the meat. Looking at his fingers, he raised them to his nose and sniffed, followed by a tentative lick. A strange expression crossed his bestial features, and he tore a piece of chicken off the bone, shoving it into his mouth.
Brielle perched herself on the edge of a bar stool and watched as he devoured the chicken, barely chewing each piece before swallowing and taking another bite. Within a couple of minutes, he’d consumed the meal. She started to reach for the empty container to place in the trash, when Garenth broke the leg bone and proceeded to suck out the marrow. The sight of it made her wince, but he seemed to delight in the taste. He tossed the bone pieces back into the container and looked at her.
“It was good. I hungry.”
She smiled at the contentment on his face. “I’m glad. Would you like something to drink?”
“Wine.”
“Uhh, no wine. Sorry. How about a glass of water?”
He grinned. “Water good.”
She pulled a glass from the cabinet and filled it from the tap at the kitchen sink. When she turned around, she nearly collided with him. Garenth reached past her and twisted the faucet, turning the water on and off.
“Your world fascinating.”
She snickered and handed him the glass. He sniffed the contents before drinking up every drop.
“More?”
In answer, he gently moved her aside and refilled the glass himself, drinking about half of the contents before setting it down on the counter.
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” A yawn caught her unaware. She tried to cover it with her hand.
“You tired.” The concern in his tone was unavoidable. “You rest.”
“Yeah. Last night was pretty rough. Would you mind if I went to lay down for a little bit and take a nap? When I wake up, I’ll go get you something more to eat. I don’t have anything on hand here to cook for you, and that little bit of chicken couldn’t have been enough to fill you up.”
Garenth frowned slightly. “You rest,” he reiterated.
She patted him on the shoulder and walked into her bedroom, half-expecting for him to tag behind. When she reached the bed, she turned to see him standing in the doorway, watching her. For a second she wondered what he was thinking. She also realized she didn’t feel uncomfortable having him here. Having him in such close proximity, despite his fearsome appearance. Or his alienness.
He’s like a time traveler who’s become lost in a strange new world.
No. He is a time traveler. And he is lost. He’s lost, confused, angry, and unable to comprehend what he sees and hears. I bet that’s the first time he ever ate chicken, too.
“Garenth, would you like it if I turned on the TV so you won’t get bored?” Damn. She should have thought about that this morning before she left.
His brows lowered, which she half-expected.
Going back into the living room, she picked up the remote and turned on the television, quickly flipping it to a news channel. Although she knew he wouldn’t be able to make out what was being said, at least he could view the pictures and get some kind of idea of the world he now inh
abited.
She handed him the remote, then tapped the buttons. “Off.” The TV went blank. “On.” The screen came back to life. Flashing him a smile, she left him there and returned to the bedroom. Using a spare blanket as covering, she kicked off her shoes and crawled on top of the bedspread.
The last thing she was aware of was hearing the familiar jingle of an insurance company playing from the other room.
*
Garenth returned to the bedroom and slowly eased the door open to gaze upon the woman lying on the bed. After she’d left that morning, he had spent those intervening hours thinking of her. Wondering what would become of her once he found the mother idol.
At the same time, he’d tried to think of what he would do when he retrieved the blessed vial. A part of him kept insisting he should return to his home country, but that suggestion was met with disdain. The idea of going back to years of sleep had become abhorrent to him, especially now that he’d seen this new world.
Since he’d met Brielle.
But common sense also told him he couldn’t stay with her. In fact, there was nowhere in this time where someone like him would be welcome.
He touched his face again. His appearance alone was horrid. But Brielle accepted him. She’d offered him shelter, and she’d brought him food and drink. And she’d touched him, without hesitation, without fear, and without revulsion.
The young woman sighed, drawing his attention back to her. She was lying on her side, facing away from him, her body curled slightly. She looked vulnerable, and he found himself wanting to go over and wrap his body around hers for protection. It was a desire that continued to grow in him, along with a stirring between his legs that had been dormant for so long it was almost alien to him. But he knew his feelings, his returning need and want, were futile. He was a creature who was not meant to be, and he silently cursed Minbar for what she’d done to him.
He’d come to accept the fact that he had gotten his revenge on Serasin by outliving the vizier. By surviving after the man had condemned him to die. But what kind of life was this? What kind of existence could he expect to have in this form?
I need to find the mother idol, he repeatedly reminded himself. Without it, I will die. Or maybe I am already dying because I have lost contact with it.
He shook his head. There was no way he could fit into Brielle’s life, or into any kind of life on this world. As much as he tried to avoid it, he knew that his only option after retrieving the mother idol was to return to his home country and accept whatever future the gods planned for him.
A heaviness filled his chest, now that he was finally willing to accept his true fate. His only fate.
Silently, he returned to the open window and slipped out onto the fire escape to await the night. Once he deemed it safe enough, he would continue in his search for the mother idol. Something told him he would be successful. Perhaps even tonight.
As he took a stance on the metal landing, he bowed his head and closed his eyes. But no matter how hard he tried to concentrate on his task, his thoughts always returned to the woman lying sleeping in the room behind him.
Chapter 20
Search
Ra, the sun god, disappeared behind the obelisks, dragging the blanket of night across the sky behind him. Garenth checked the figure still sleeping in the room. She hadn’t moved much while he’d waited for the end of the day.
With the exception of the one time when he’d returned to the front eating room to get another drink of water from the basin, he’d remained on the outer metal ledge. His hunger pangs hadn’t returned, even though he knew several hours had passed. For that he was grateful. He was beginning to fear becoming human again. Becoming a real man again. For with that need to eat and to drink, he knew that eventually the time would come when he would need to sleep. And that meant he would also tire.
He couldn’t afford to sleep or grow tired until he’d acquired the mother idol again.
When he determined it was dark enough for him to continue his search, he took off without waking her. Circling around the towers, he kept himself open as he sought for that intangible signal that would lead him directly to the vial. Meanwhile, this vast city refused to slow down. No matter what time of the day or night, it was always moving, always active.
Time passed. The moon god Khonsu rose above the edge of the world to begin his nightly ride across the dark, heavenly dome. Garenth kept to his original plan, flying in steadily widening concentric circles, using Brielle’s home as his center. The further he pulled away from her, the fainter his connection with her became. It didn’t disappear completely, but it diminished enough to allow him to clear his head and focus on the idol.
A strange metal bird with wings atop its head flew near him. It held a metal torch between its misshapen feet and played the light over the buildings and the streets below. To avoid detection, he lifted further above the temples. The winds became stronger the higher he flew. Cold and biting, they slid over him like a dead lover’s caress, and he shivered—
Garenth slammed into the side of one building and clung there, digging the talons on his hands and feet into the structure as the truth bombarded him. He felt the cold. More proof he was regaining his humanity. First the hunger, then the thirst, and now the cold.
No. It was not hunger or thirst that first reawakened in me. It was need. It was desire. It was wanting Brielle to accept me in a way that was almost desperation.
He shivered again. Closing his eyes, he opened himself up and prayed to Petbe. The wind stilled as if in answer, and at long last, it came to him. A sensing so faint, it was difficult to pinpoint where it was coming from.
Garenth launched himself back into the sky, letting the air currents keep him aloft as he honed in on the signal. When he opened his eyes again, a large black obelisk loomed in the distance. Its outer walls were made of the shiny rock, and he could see his reflection appear as a tiny dot on its surface that gradually grew larger as he approached.
The whispers in his head increased, letting him know he was closing in on the mother idol. His stomach tightened, but not with hunger. Beating his wings to increase his speed, he locked on to one particular shiny panel and lowered his head to ram it the same way he’d entered the building where he’d first found the vial.
And Brielle.
That last thought flitted through his brain the same instant he hit the wall. There was an explosion of thunder. Pieces shattered around him as he hit the floor and rolled, finally coming to a stop when he crashed into the opposite wall.
It took him a few seconds to collect himself before getting to his feet. Pieces of the dark yet clear stones fell off of him, landing on the soft carpet with the sound of tiny bells. The room was obscure. The only light came from outside, filtering through the hole he’d created.
The mother idol’s voice in his head was louder. It drew him as solidly as if a rope was tied between himself and the vial.
He went over to the rear wall covered with shelves. The calling emanated from here. From within these objects that stood on these shelves. Giving a low growl, he swept an arm across one shelf, knocking several of the heavy objects onto the ground. There on the wall, behind where the objects had been, he saw a round stone with markings on it. He touched the stone, which turned slightly. Grabbing the small protuberance, he pulled on it, but the stone held fast.
A noise caught his attention. It sounded like someone was trying to come inside. His time was running out.
He dug the nails of one hand into the minute crack behind the turning stone and tugged. There was a slight give. At the same time, the idol’s voice grew stronger. She was there on the other side of the turning stone.
Bright light flooded the room, almost blinding him. Simultaneously, someone shouted.
Garenth shook his head as his eyes tried to adjust and glanced over his shoulder. A man in a uniform stood on the far end of the room. He held one of those strange swords in his hands, and it was pointed directly at him.
Garenth noticed how the man’s eyes widened with that look of horror he was growing accustomed to.
He was so close to obtaining the mother idol. He couldn’t stop now. Not when he had finally found it.
Dismissing the man, he dug the talons of his other hand behind the turning stone. This time when he pulled, he put everything he had behind it. There was a screech, like the cry of a wounded animal as his muscles strained.
The uniformed man repeated his message with more force, but behind it Garenth heard the growing fear. It was obvious he was being ordered to do something, or not do something. The man had to be from a security detail, and had been alerted when Garenth had crashed into the building.
The turning stone screamed again. There was another slight give, then suddenly the stone came off in his hands. Garenth tried to keep himself from falling backwards, without success. The unformed man aimed his weapon, and a popping sound echoed in the room.
A hot, burning sensation hit him in the ribs and slid down his hip. Garenth hesitated. This time the weapon affected him in a way it hadn’t before. As he regained his humanity, it was evident he was becoming more vulnerable to injury. Should he go after the man, or continue in his quest of the mother idol?
The vial whispered in his mind. As long as you retain possession of the vial I’ve placed in your hand, you will live.
You will live.
He had to live. He could not die. Not now, and not from the strange weapons these people used.
He looked at where the turning stone had been set in the wall. With the stone gone, a small door had swung open to reveal a gaping hole in the wall.
Garenth got to his feet and returned to the wall. The man didn’t try to hurt him again, probably because Garenth hadn’t charged him in answer to being struck.
The uniformed man spoke again. His voice still reflected his anxiety, but Garenth also heard impatience and anger. He knew an angry man was a formable foe, and if he persisted in not doing as the man requested, he knew the man would use his weapon again.
And this time it might cause more damage and perhaps injury to him.
