by Octavia Kore
Zaheer landed on the outside platform and set Clara on her feet. He swore her toes had hardly touched the wood before she was scrambling through the membrane. When he stepped inside, Layla was already being pulled into Clara’s arms. The female gave him a curious look over her shoulder before squeezing her back.
“I feel like I haven’t seen you in so long.” Layla said as she pulled away, taking up a spot on the floor near Tratek. “Is everything all right? Your hair is wet.”
Her hands moved as she spoke, and he wondered if this was the Sign Language Clara spoke of. Zaheer glanced around the room, half-expecting to see Ivnalth tucked away somewhere, but to his surprise, his cousin was missing.
“We were down at the river before we came here.”
Layla stuck out her lower lip. “You got to go to the river? How come Ivnalth never takes me on field trips?” She blinked one eye at Clara and smiled.
“We saw the ship, Layla. Brin must have figured out what was wrong with the engine because we watched them take off. They’re gone.”
The smile on Layla’s lips faded some, but didn’t go away completely. “I’m surprised it took him so long, honestly.”
Clara reached out to rest her hand on Layla’s leg. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine… I think.” The female chuckled and shrugged her shoulders. “Let’s be honest for a second. No one on that ship really liked me. You were the only friend I ever had in the lab and after we escaped. I heard the things they said and knew what they thought about me.” Layla reached behind her into one of the baskets and pulled out a jiil root.
She repositioned herself near Tratek’s head and gently opened his mouth. The root made a soft popping sound when she broke it in half, and Zaheer watched as she dribbled the water onto his tongue, coaxing him to swallow by rubbing her hand down the front of Tratek’s throat.
“So you aren’t upset about them leaving? You aren’t upset that we’ll likely never get back to Earth?”
“I don’t know if you noticed, but Earth was going to shit. We’ve seen what the Grutex are capable of and even if Jun and Telisa can convince the Venium to help humanity, there was nothing there for me. I guess it sounds crazy because I’ve been trapped inside this treehouse the entire time we’ve been here, but I like it here. I’m even making friends. Just don’t tell Ivnalth I consider her my friend. She isn’t ready to admit she likes me so much.”
“Has Ivnalth been here today?”
“She was here early this morning to check on Tratek, but she mentioned she was going to see your mother.”
“My mother? Did she say why?”
“She showed me Clara’s dress, which looks amazing on you by the way, and I asked her if she’d be able to make me one as well.” She gestured at herself. “I’m so tired of wearing this suit all the time.”
Zaheer tried reaching out to his cousin along the bond. “Ivnalth?” When there was no response, anxiety settled into his gut. “I don’t mean to cut this visit short, Annih, but I need to find Ivnalth.” As the females said their goodbyes, Zaheer crouched down next to Tratek. The wounds were nearly completely healed now. He prayed to the goddess that his packmate would wake soon and give them the answers they needed.
“Next time, I’ll bring River with me so I don’t have to rush back,” Clara was saying as she stepped out of her friend’s embrace. “I’ll see you soon.” His mate stayed silent as they moved from one outpost to the other, but as soon as he stepped into the small room she’d been living in and set her on the floor, Clara grabbed his hand. “Is everything okay?”
“I haven’t spoken to Ivnalth since I saw her at the sparring circle, but she went against her own beliefs to do something she thought would make you happy. I’d like to check on her.”
“Go find her then.”
“I don’t want to leave you here alone again…”
Clara rolled her eyes as she pulled his head down, pressing her lips to his. “I’ll be fine. It’s not like I haven’t been alone here before, and now I’ve got River to keep me company. Be safe,” she whispered, squeezing him tighter before stepping away.
“I won’t be long.”
Zaheer stood at the edge of the village with his hands clenched at his sides. The knot in his stomach had grown at the sight of so many Krunkeeli milling about. This was the center of the tribe, the place where he’d played with his friends as a pup while his mother kept a watchful eye. Males and females sat at the base of trees weaving baskets and spinning threads for clothing and blankets, but his mother was not among those present.
Leaving the loud and crowded center, Zaheer made his way through the trees, gazing up at the homes that hung high above them. Unlike the outpost pods, the homes here were large and capable of housing many Krunkeeli comfortably. Some had ladders swinging from the wide outer platforms to make it easier for pups who were still learning to climb. It occurred to him suddenly that he and Clara might have their own pups someday.
We could have them soon, his beast purred.
His steps faltered as that realization sank in. He’d lived his entire life thinking none of this would be a possibility for him or any of the other guardians, but things were changing for all of them now, and he prayed that it was for the better.
At five rotations, Zaheer hadn’t been old enough to explore on his own, but he remembered running down this path as a pup and excitedly pointing out their home among the branches. A small carving at the base of one of the massive trees caught his eye and he veered toward it. The symbols were sloppy, but he could just make out half of his name etched into the bark.
I did this before I left… before we met, Zaheer told his guardian, tracing his fingers over the symbols.
Lucky for us, your spelling has improved immensely.
Zaheer looked up at the black home that hung above him and took a deep breath to calm his nerves before beginning to climb. He could smell the incense from the ground and as he climbed higher, Zaheer heard movement coming from within. When he reached one of the supporting branches of the home, Zaheer slipped down onto the landing as quietly as possible. He stared at the dark-colored membrane in front of him, scared to go in, but even more scared to turn around and go back without answers.
As he stepped through into the main room of the home, the smell of freshly lit incense assaulted him. Wispy smoke curled through the air from the altar that sat within the worship room just to the side of the entrance. There were multiple smaller offering tables with carved shrines, each with its own little plate of pajoo burning.
Before he even had a chance to call out and announce himself, footsteps approached and his mother walked through from an adjoining room, a basket full of blooms in her arms, muttering to herself as she plucked at the tips. She hadn’t changed all that much since the last time he’d seen her. There were streaks of grey in her once long black hair and sprinkled through the black stripes on her white fur, but her face was still the one he’d been dreaming of for rotations. This was still the face he remembered looking back at him as they were led away from one another.
“Mother.”
Her head jerked up, and the basket she’d been carrying dropped to the floor, scattering tiny petals at her feet. Tears instantly filled her green eyes, spilling from the corners as she blinked up at him. “Zaheer?” She rushed over to him, her basket forgotten now, but stopped just short of touching as if she was unsure about this as he was.
“I thought you might have forgotten about me.”
Her lips trembled as she reached up to touch his face, trailing her fingers over his cheeks before she threw all four of her arms around him. “I could never forget my son. Goddess knows I’ve missed you so much, Zaheer.”
He felt his mother’s tears wet his fur as she clung to him, but it took Zaheer a few moments before he could force his arms to move. They stood there in silence, wrapped up in one another. He let the rotations slip away until he was nothing more than a pup taking comfort from his mother’s embrace. She’d h
eld him like this the night before he left, squeezed him so tight to her that he’d laughed and tried to wriggle away. If he could go back to that day, he might have never let her go.
If Pumo really was behind Tratek’s disappearance and injuries, what had Zaheer’s sacrifice been for? They’d all lost so many rotations, so many chances to make memories, to live, and for what? Maybe Clara was right.
“Did I interrupt your prayer?” he asked, unsure what to say.
His mother pulled back and glanced at the fallen basket. “You interrupted nothing. I have prayed every day since you left.” She released him from the hug, but kept a firm grip on his lower hands as if she were scared he might disappear.
Zaheer rubbed at the back of his neck as he stood there, awkwardly attempting to make small talk. “Since I left? Why?”
“For forgiveness,” she whispered, more tears gathering and spilling down her cheeks. “To ask for strength, and to ask the goddess to keep you safe.”
He should be talking to her about Ivnalth, but he couldn’t quell the urge to ask, “Why forgiveness?”
“I ask for forgiveness because I could not accept what we had done. I had to let you go with them, but that didn’t mean I had to stop missing you or that I was ever going to stop wishing for you to return. We were told from the moment you were born what an honor it was to bring a pup into the world who was destined to serve the goddess, but it broke my heart. We were going to lose you when we’d only just gotten you.” His mother shook her head. “Maybe it was selfish of me, but I didn’t want… I didn’t want to say goodbye.
“Losing you was the worst pain I’d ever felt, Zaheer. You looked so much like your father then—especially now—that there were days when it was hard to be near him. I couldn’t even leave our home for half a rotation after. Seeing the other pups only reminded me that I didn’t have you anymore.”
Zaheer glanced around what he could see of his mother’s home. Nothing had changed. “Did you and father not have other pups?”
“No,” she released his hands and stepped back, curling her arms around her body. “There were no more after you.”
Zaheer could remember his father promising him siblings, telling him how much fun it would be to have his own playmates. He hadn’t understood then that he wouldn’t have been around to see them, but hearing that they’d never had any others after him was shocking.
“Father always said he—”
“He wanted them. We would have filled our home with pups if he’d had his way, but I couldn’t. How could I have more knowing we risked losing them just as we’d lost you? I would have died before giving up another pup.”
There was so much pain in her eyes that it broke Zaheer’s heart. He’d struggled with the loss of his parents, but his mother’s agony was like an open wound that had never quite healed.
“I was so happy when Ivnalth came the other day,” she said, drawing his attention. “She told me that you’d mated, that you were happy. I’d love to meet her some time.”
“Hopefully soon. Is Ivnalth still here?”
His mother shook her head and gestured toward a pile of fabric inside the main room. “She came to ask me for another dress, but I was short on lohru for the dye and she went to gather it. I’m expecting her back in the morning. Is everything all right?”
It shouldn’t have taken so long for that, and if she was merely gathering lohru flowers, then she should have responded to his calls by now. “I’m sure it will be fine. I’ll return tomorrow to check—”
Fear and panic moved along the bond he shared with Clara, followed by a sharp pain on his neck and throat.
“Zaheer!”
His name was faint, but he could hear the strain and the terror in it. Every protective instinct in his body flared to life as his heart began to pound frantically. Without so much as a goodbye or explanation to his mother, Zaheer tore through the barrier of the home and leaped from the platform, shifting as he fell through the air and landing on four massive paws. He was bolting away a split second later. The forest around him blurred as he raced back toward the outpost, his fear rising like bile to choke him.
Tsa!
They were coming for her, and goddess help anyone who stood in their way.
Chapter 21
Clara
“I have never felt so judged by a plant before in my life.” Clara stared down at the bloom that served as the toilet and swore she could feel it staring right back at her. I'm having a staring contest with a flower. Its large dark red petals fanned out from the gaping black hole that sat in the center.
She’d been on this planet for at least two weeks and she still wasn’t completely sure how it worked. Sometimes when she used the bloom, it sprayed a stream of water up at her like a bidet. She hadn’t figured out what triggered the spray yet, and she was determined to find out. Clara waved her hand over the top, repeating the motion from varying distances. Not motion activated then.
Don’t do it, her guardian warned, amusement in her tone. You might not like the outcome.
I’m going to find out one way or another, she grumbled, peering down into the hole. Maybe it was triggered by the actual waste falling inside? Her hand brushed the petals as she leaned in closer. The center of the flower snapped closed at her touch and a stream of warm water caught her right in the face before she had time to rear back.
Clara gasped in surprise, inhaling some of the liquid as she struggled to turn away. “Son of a—” She coughed and sputtered, gagging on the bitter-tasting water. A few seconds later, the stream stopped and the flower opened back up as if it hadn’t just tried to drown her.
In her head, Clara could hear her guardian’s laughter. I warned you, she said, her eyes sprinkling with mischief.
Yeah, you were super helpful. Note to self, don’t touch the petals until you’re ready to get clean. She’d never used a bidet back on Earth, but the alien version of it wasn’t so bad once she knew how to work it. With her curiosity satisfied, Clara shook the remaining water off her hands and glanced back at the barrier. She should feed River again, and maybe when Zaheer returned she could talk to him about creating some way for her to get up and down the tree without having to rely on him.
This cannot be our home forever, her guardian protested.
Clara pursed her lips. I guess not, but we haven’t exactly sat down and come up with a ten-year plan yet. There’s still time to figure out what to do. If Zaheer and the other guardians couldn’t live within the tribe, then where would they make their home? She stepped toward the barrier that led back to the small main room.
There’s no space to raise pups here, and as comfortable as your nest is, it’s far too small. Our tsa will find us something more acceptable.
Hold on. Clara jerked her hand back through the barrier and frowned. Who said anything about pups? I just want a way to get up and the tree.
If you let me out, I could climb up and down the tree for us.
The thought of shifting again made her stomach roil. I’m not so sure I’m ready for that, Clara told her guardian as she pushed through the membrane.
The more you shift, the easier it will be.
It felt like I jumped from a plane without a parachute and then rolled down the side of a mountain. I’ll pass for right now.
Spoiling all the… Inside her mind, Clara’s guardian went on alert. Her back arched as her head lowered, a spine-tingling growl rumbling from her.
What? What’s wrong?
Someone is here. It’s not our tsa’s scent.
There were only two others who ever came to her treehouse, and Zaheer was currently hunting for one of them. Clara inhaled through her nose, noticing a subtle difference, but nothing she could discern. When she peered inside, Clara was surprised to find Maylu crouched down beside the baskets. River was perched in the center of one of his lower hands as he fed the little tahi small pieces of webbing he plucked from his tails.
It’s just Maylu, she said, relieved beyond belief. Her g
uardian grumbled, eyes still narrowed on the other male even as she settled back down. He’s not a threat.
“Did Zaheer send you to babysit me again?” Clara asked with a smile when Maylu turned toward her.
The big male shot up, nearly unseating River who clutched at his thumbs. His movements were jerky and clumsy, like a child’s when they were caught doing something they knew they shouldn’t. He placed River back in their basket before turning back to Clara. “Yes. He sent me to come get you. I’m supposed to bring you to him.”
Don’t.
Clara felt her skin ripple beneath the fabric of her dress and fought the urge to frown. Don’t what?
Do not go with him. If our tsa needed us, he would have reached out along the bond. Something isn’t right. He smells… fearful.
Something in the way Maylu was looking at her told Clara this wasn’t just her guardian being overprotective. He’d always greeted her with an easy smile, was friendly and always looked out for her. Maylu had been the only one of her captors to try to communicate with her and she’d come to think of him as her friend. The male standing in front of her wasn’t the Maylu she knew. His mouth was set in a hard line, and his fingers twitched like he was anxious to get something over with.
There was a reason Zaheer had left Clara in the treehouse, and her guardian was right, if he needed her then he would have reached out. Maylu had fed her, kept her company, but he had never fetched her for her mate.
“Hurry now. We need to leave.” He reached out a hand for her to take.
Something is wrong with him.
“Zaheer told me to stay here,” Clara said. “I think I should wait for him.”
“We don’t have time for this.” He stalked forward, his patience with her clearly at an end. “We need to go!”
Clara stumbled backward, startled by the aggression in his eyes.
Let me out! Let me have control!
As tempted as she was to hand over the reins to her guardian, Clara remembered her conversation with Zaheer at the river. She needed multiple shifts and guidance from him, her alpha, before they could shift on their own.
