by Elin Wyn
“Not so fast, big guy,” I replied. “It’s nighttime. We’ll have to wait for the morning.”
“Why?” he asked. “Isn’t it all the same down here?”
“Well, it is,” I explained. “But it’s different when it comes to the Old Caverns. No one goes there, especially not during the night. It’s bad luck.”
“Bad...luck?” He repeated me after, his smile made of equal parts amusement and confusion. The concept of superstition seemed to be a foreign one to him.
“Yeah,” I nodded patiently. “See, there’s more than just rock in those caverns. It used to house an old underground city. The first generation of black-market sellers that ventured under the ground in Duvest settled there, and they turned the place into a city. A mix of stone and tent. It’s deserted now, though.”
“Deserted? Why?”
“There was a massacre,” I said, lowering my voice. The people in here didn’t like to talk about that in the open, even if those things had happened more than a few generations ago. “Two factions of sellers were competing for control of the city, and they decided to make a deal. They met during the night in the main plaza, but both leaders were planning to use the meeting as a trap...suffice to say, the whole thing turned into a bloodbath fast. The battle lasted for days, or so the story goes, and a lot of innocent people died. The survivors settled here, in this place we’re in.”
“Do people think there are still soldiers down there?” he asked me, completely confused by my explanation. “If that happened so long ago, I doubt there’s anyone there.”
“Everyone knows that,” I sighed. “It’s just...people don’t like it, alright? A lot of blood was shed there during the night, so people can’t help but associate one thing with the other.”
“I see,” he said, but I could tell he still didn’t understand the meaning of ‘bad luck’. Apparently, the only thing the Valorni considered to be bad luck would be a depowered blaster rifle or a malfunctioning grenade. “So what do we do now?”
“We wait,” I said with a smile. Truth be told, I was actually looking forward to spending some time just milling around the marketplace. I had visited the underground Duvest marketplace a lot when I was just a kid, curious about all the things littering all the different shop displays, and this whole trip had left me feeling a bit nostalgic.
“Wait where, exactly?”
“Come with me,” I said, grabbing his hand and pulling him after me. We made our way through the tiny little streets, a few people glancing at Sylor as we went, and I happily noticed that everyone looked more curious than afraid. It seemed that the sentry’s concerns were unfounded: nobody in here was freaking out because a massive green alien was walking among the crowd. If anything, they were fascinated by Sylor.
At the edge of the market, I immediately noticed a few stalls set up in front of what looked like a sea of tents. Some were so tiny that I doubted Sylor would fit inside them, but others looked massive enough to hold a small banquet. There were less tents in there than I remembered, but I supposed that was only normal. This was the underground’s idea of a hotel and, since Duvest had turned into a ghost city, I guessed there weren’t many travelers passing through here anymore.
“You have money, right?” I asked Sylor.
“I have enough back pay that I haven’t been able to spend.”
“Good, we’re going to need it,” I said. “Wait here, I’m going to get us a tent.”
I went straight toward a man in one of the stalls and, just a few minutes later, I had negotiated a discount on one of the larger tents. I was pretty sure Sylor wouldn’t appreciate me squandering his money on luxury accommodations, but he had no concept of the price of things down here. Besides, I had poured my heart and soul into getting us here: I had earned a reward.
“This is us,” I told Sylor, pushing the front flaps of our tent to the side. A tall pole stood at the center of it, holding it all up, and what looked like a hundred pillows of different sizes had been laid out on the floor. “Oh, yes,” I cried out, falling back on top of a mountain of pillows.
“This is…”
“Awesome?”
“Weird,” Sylor said, tentatively sitting on top of some pillows. He looked uncomfortable. “Is this how everyone sleeps down here?”
“Not everyone,” I laughed. “Just the lucky ones.” Jumping to my feet, I went to the table that had been set in one of the corners and poured myself a glass of fresh water from the pitcher. There was also a bowl with grapes and some fresh peaches—not exactly a feast but, when it came to the underground, this was real luxury.
“Is that dinner?” Sylor asked, looking over my shoulder at the bowl of fruit on the table.
“No,” I laughed, and then turned around and opened my hand. “Can I have some more of your money?” Frowning, he didn’t argue with me. He had done a good job adjusting to human customs, but the underground lifestyle was in a completely different ballpark. He was like a fish out of water here, completely dependent on me.
I liked that, especially because I could manage all the money he had brought with him. Supposedly, these funds were meant to be used exclusively in the pursuit of our objective, but it wasn’t like any of the sellers down there were handing out invoices. As far as I was concerned, I had a license to spend.
And that was exactly what I was going to do.
With Sylor’s help, I started making the rounds. I visited each and every one of the food merchants stationed outside the traveler’s precinct, and it didn’t take long before we had a huge number of trays inside our tent. Laid out on a low table I had asked for, the food seemed to be calling out my name. From fried vegetables to grilled meat, we had a little of everything. I had even bought two pitchers of real beer, not the kind of watered-down piss that passed for alcohol these days in Nyheim.
“No food shortage in this place,” Sylor said the moment we had finished our shopping spree. He stood at the end of the table, arms folded over his chest as he examined all the food we had bought. “How the skrell is there so much food in here?”
“Nyheim has been cut off from the other cities,” I said. “Farmers can’t get inside the city anymore, not while those vines are still there, but they need to get rid of their produce before it turns bad. If I had to guess, I’d say some of the Duvest merchants are already hanging out someplace between Nyheim and Duvest, and they’re buying food they can sell down here at a discounted rate.”
It was just a guess but, going from all the experience I had amassed living in the underground, I was pretty confident that my explanation was an accurate one. Of course, I didn’t tell Sylor I had spent more than what a family of four would spend in a week. That information I kept to myself. If we were back in Nyheim, I’d feel guilty...but no one seemed to be going hungry in Duvest’s underground.
“Are you going to just stare at the food?” I asked Sylor. I was already sitting at the table with my legs crossed, a large plate of boiled rice and beef in front of me. Just the smell of it was enough to make me feel alive. We had been surviving on military rations during our trip here, and eating real food for a change felt more than amazing.
“It does look good,” Sylor finally said, and it didn’t take long before he was trying a little of everything. He ate four times more than I did, and he emptied the two pitchers of beer by himself. By the time we were done, it seemed as if a famished mob had been eating with us.
“This felt good,” Sylor laughed, one hand draped over his stomach. He threw himself back on top of the pillows, a satisfied look on his face. Back in Nyheim, he had probably been surviving on rations, eating far less than what he really wanted or needed. Now, though, he had made up for it.
Happy—nothing made me happier than a full stomach—I got up and joined Sylor, lying beside him on the bed we had improvised with the pillows and blankets. As I closed my eyes, I was almost surprised I wasn’t thinking of anything. I didn’t think of the Xathi, of the Nyheim vines, or Odeon’s death.
&n
bsp; I simply closed my eyes and fell asleep.
Sylor
I had always been a light sleeper, so whenever Nesta moved in our small tent, I was aware of it. If tonight was any indication of how she slept, it was a wonder that she ever felt rested.
However, it wasn’t her constant tossing and turning that had me uncomfortable. It was the small something that was poking me in the back. No matter where I moved, it seemed to be poking me right in the spine, and I couldn’t reach it no matter how I stretched and contorted my arms.
Not wanting to wake Nesta, I quietly slipped out of the tent and stretched myself to my full height. I nodded politely to one of the local denizens, who returned my nod, and I motioned for him to come near. “I do not mean to bother you,” I whispered. “But there is something in the middle of my back that I cannot reach. Would you be so kind?”
He nodded with a slight smile. I turned around and before I could speak, he grunted in surprise. He put one hand on my back, then grabbed whatever was poking me and pulled. I felt something tug at my skin, then heard a small slurping noise as whatever was attached to my back was finally removed.
My new friend showed me what he had removed. It was some sort of small, slimy creature with a suction-cup mouth, black in color and shiny in the underground light that shined down from above. My quizzical look expressed the question on my mind, and he answered quietly. “It’s a leech. We sometimes have them down here, especially when it rains up above. They are harmless, but annoying, little bloodsuckers.”
He dropped it on the ground then stepped on it, a loud squishing noise accompanied with a short squeal. I honestly felt a little sorry for the creature. “If they are harmless, why did you kill it?”
He shrugged. “They bother me. Good night,” he finished with a smile and walked away.
Absentmindedly scratching near the spot where the leech had attached itself, I shook my head in wonder and quietly went back into the tent. I readjusted my sleeping area and crawled back in under the sheet. As I moved to get comfortable, Nesta rolled over and curled up against me. I attempted to move so she could be comfortable, but as I moved, her arm snaked up and over me. She lightly nuzzled me and made a sound that almost sounded like a light “coo.”
I smiled. I actually liked how she felt against me. Her lithe little body, with her surprisingly soft skin, felt nice, almost comfortable. Her body heat mingled with mine, making the coolness of the warren bearable.
I looked down at her. Her projected toughness was gone, replaced by innocence. Her protective walls were down, and she finally seemed to be at peace with herself and her life. Perhaps sleep was the only time she allowed herself to be off her guard. I gently moved my arm out from under her and wrapped it around her. I put my left hand under my head and closed my eyes.
I woke up later to see Nesta staring up at me.
“Hi,” she said sweetly.
“Hi,” I breathed out. “Sleep well?”
“Mmm. Guess you’re pretty comfortable to sleep on,” she joked, a little grin on her face as she spoke.
“Well, I’ve always been told that I have soft skin,” I joked. It was true, my father used to say that I was soft-skinned whenever I showed any form of compassion towards something.
Luckily, Nesta didn’t catch the hidden meaning. “Mm, yeah, you do,” she said, running her fingers lightly up my chest. She traced little lines on my chest, a light smile gracing her lips as she touched me. It felt good to feel those fingers on me. Her touch was so light and gentle that I felt little bumps form on my skin.
“That feels good,” I said, gruffly.
“I like it, too.”
Her fingers continued to stroke me lazily.
“Your fingers are powerful, for someone so small.”
“I can bring a giant beast like you to heel.”
“And I can make you moan.”
She giggled lightly. “I gave you goosebumps with my fingers. I wonder what I’ll give you with this.” She crawled her way up and leaned in close to me. I brought my face up to hers and kissed her. My lips touched hers and we grabbed onto one another, forcing our lips harder against one another. Her tongue was the first to part lips and I enjoyed the sweet saltiness that accompanied her tongue.
Suddenly, Nesta pulled away from me, a look of confusion on her face. “What is it?” I asked.
“We…we,” she stuttered a bit as she found her words. “We just kissed, but we don’t like one another. Do we?”
“Don’t we?” I asked. She blushed and tried to bury her face in my chest. It was adorable. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you blush like this,” I said as I ran my hand through her hair.
“And I’m pretty sure you’ve never had goosebumps before,” she shot back playfully.
She pulled herself up from me and brought her hands down, rubbing me as she began to open my pants. She took my cock out and let out a small gasp as it was finally freed. She then grabbed me again and began to stroke me, bringing an almost animalistic growl of pleasure from me. I felt the wetness of her lips cover me and I couldn’t take it anymore. I grabbed her head and began to thrust myself into her mouth.
“Skrell,” I moaned as she continued her ministrations.
The sound of sucking and moaning began to fill the air of our tent.
With one last thrust, I came hard in her mouth.
She continued to suck my cock until I was spent.
We lay there for a long moment, collecting our breath.
“Unfortunately,” she said with a groan as she pulled herself away from me, “we need to go.”
I hated that she pulled away from me, but she was correct. We needed the toxin and there wasn’t time for personal enjoyment, not yet. I nodded as I sat up. “You’re right, but soon...” We quickly got dressed, gathered our gear, and left the tent. I made a show of holding the tent flap open for Nesta. She lightly ran her hand across my chest and smiled up at me as she walked past.
We walked together away from where we had spent the night towards the rear of the market. At the far the end of the warren, where the remnants of the vendors’ wares and booths stood, was a tunnel. While I didn’t think much of the tunnel itself, I did happen to notice that the mouth of the tunnel was clear. The other tunnels had either a small guard station or supplies piled up near them, but this one was empty. There was nothing within five to ten yards of this one.
“I guess this is the tunnel then,” I remarked.
“Uh-huh.” She did not look happy, but I could see in her eyes that she was resolute and determined to proceed. “This is how we get to the Old Caverns. Should take us a couple of hours to get there.”
“Ah, a short jaunt. I approve,” I said, attempting to put a bit of humor into my tone.
“Ha,” she responded. We began our trek into the tunnel. It was wide, nearly twelve feet across and about ten feet tall. I had to jump to reach the ceiling.
“Do you know what created this tunnel?” I asked as a way of making conversation.
Nesta shook her head. “No. This one is older than us, here long before the city grew underground.”
“I see.” We continued on for a while in silence before I decided to try conversing again. “How do you know so much about things down here? You look very young, almost too young to know so much.”
She cleared her throat before answering. “Well, thank you for the compliment, I think. I’m nineteen and I grew up down here. Well, not here, specifically,” she amended. “But, you know what I mean.”
I nodded to show that I did.
She took a deep breath and continued on. “I…I don’t really know who my parents were. I grew up as a ward to one of the bigger dealers. He ran the market back under Nyheim. When I was younger, he used to bring me here whenever he had a delivery to make or something to pick up. He taught me everything I know.”
Her voice was humble and reserved as she spoke. It made me feel respect for this man. Then, something made me wonder. “You speak about him in the pa
st tense,” I stated.
She nodded. “Yes, I did. I…” she sighed, and her head dropped a fraction of an inch. “I don’t think he’s alive anymore. I haven’t been able to find him since the Xathi attack.”
“I’m sorry,” I said as I placed my hand on her shoulder. She reached up and patted my hand, giving me a sad smile.
Then her expression changed as she looked up at me. “Wait a minute. How old are you? I told you my age, without really meaning to, so you tell me yours.”
“Well,” I said as I thought about it. “While a standard year here is not the same as a year on my homeworld, I believe that it is close enough to not make a significant difference.”
“What do you mean?” she asked.
I tilted my head to the side as I smiled at her. “Well, based on what I’ve learned of this world since we’ve been here, your people chose this planet because it was within certain parameters of the human homeworld of Earth. An Earth year is three-hundred and sixty-five days long. A year here is three-hundred and fifty days long. A year on my world is three-hundred and seventy-three days long.”
“Wow,” she interjected, a bit surprised if I read her facial expression correctly.
I nodded. “As I said, not much difference. Based on Valorni calendars, I have seen twenty-eight years pass since my birth. As a matter of fact,” I added, “the commemoration of my birth is soon upcoming. Approximately two months away.”
“So, your birthday is only two months away. That means that your birthday is in our winter season,” she said after doing some counting in her head.
“It would seem so, although on my homeworld, I was born in the late spring,” I explained.
“Wow. Maybe, one day, you could take me there,” she said as we walked around a bend in the tunnel.
“Perhaps,” I said. She was young, had grown up without parents, and was a survivor. She had been used as a thief for much of her life. She knew nothing else. It had to be that way, it was the only scenario that made sense. I wanted to question her about it when I noticed that she was staring intently ahead. I looked forward…we had arrived.
