by Deb Sartoris
We were at the cave one night: me, Sofia and a few others. We were resting and enjoying story telling. So many new friends had arrived and along with them their stories of their lives. Ely came into the main cave area. He was very upset. He held a paper in his hand. He came straight to me and Sofia. Sofia stood and took the note from her brother, read it and almost fainted. I had to take her arm to keep her from falling down. This affected the entire group of families that were present.
The note that Ely had brought was from their home planet; they had received a message from the newly repaired transmitter. A warning proximity beacon had activated showing pending arrival of a ship from Armis.
News of the pending arrival of a ship from the Armis home planet caused many people to become upset. Would it be friend or foe? What will happen when they arrive here on this planet? Will they be searching for Sofia and Ely? It took all of the combined strength of Sofia and Ely to calm the group enough so they could all discuss what if anything could be done should the ship bring with it the enemy of Sofia’s Armis people.
The warning beacon did not give a time, only that a ship was close to arrival. Since all of the Armis ships had tracking beacons the ship that was buried deep within this cave would be activated and transmit its location once the other ship came close enough. No one had thought that this part of the ship should be de-activated or turned off since no one dreamed that another ship would come to this planet.
When they originally fled their home planet, Ely and Sofia did not tell anyone – even those who agreed to come with them where they were going. They did not know themselves as they left in such a hurry that they turned into space and let fate take them where it would.
How could another Armis ship find them? It was not possible – Old Earth was very far away from Armis – both Sofia and Ely had told me that many years were needed to travel between the two planets.
There was no time to waste. Everyone decided that most likely the ship carried the people whom everyone feared the most. It was not unlike my species when they had sent out hunters to search for me. Ely and Sofia were considered to be traitors from their planet. The ship could carry hunters searching for their planet’s queen and her brother.
Guards were posted at the ship’s equipment and transmitter station around the clock. Efforts were doubled to continue the repairs of the ship that lay beneath the cave. Thanks to my funds and years of knowledge in the scientific community, most of the ship was repairable. There were items that this planet could not offer so some things could not be repaired. Ely and Sofia kept assuring me that what was not fixed would not hinder their departure should they need to leave in a hurry.
Time went very quickly. No further communications had been received and yet the thought of the other ship’s arrival was heavy on everyone’s mind.
One night Sofia and I were out in the forest walking after I had finished my last hunt for the night. It was clear and the stars were glowing as if you could reach your hand up and touch them. Once again, Sofia and I had not had much time to be alone in months; so much of her time was needed to supervise the repair work.
Sofia had also been busy helping bring all of the new children into this world. But by this time all of the expecting women had delivered and no one else was heavy with child. Sofia told me that it is the way of their people to bring their children into the world prior to space travel.
Sofia and I set on the blanket and stared out into space. I could see the reflection of the stars in her eyes. She was not glowing as she had been several months ago. She was always light skinned but lately even her odd markings were not showing up under the waterfalls as they had. It was as if she was ailing in some fashion. I tried to discuss her health on several occasions but she always told me that she would be fine and just needed to rest.
While we were laying there watching the night sky and the clouds drifting across the moon I noticed something. Sofia must have noticed the same thing as she set up on the blanket and turned to the West. She sat very still for a few seconds then stood up. She grabbed my hand and told me we had to return to the cave quickly.
I picked her up and without further thought raced to the cave. Ely was waiting along with several others just outside the mouth of the cave. Ely had a different look upon his face. I could not tell if he was happy or sad, just that he was aware of something.
Ely said that another communication had started. Sofia told me and Ely that she was sure that the other ship was orbiting the planet at that instant. She had seen something in the night sky. She had also felt something. She later explained to me that her insides became alive as if a piece of the planet called to her that night.
I was expecting this to be bad news but it was not. The communication from the other ship stated that it was some of the royal family and a search party looking for Sofia and Ely. They were not the enemy but part of the group of Armis people who only wanted the safe return of their queen and her brother. They had been searching for many years for them and had come close enough to our solar system that each ship had “called” each other.
As with many other Armis devices it seems that both ships are like a mated pair and each is part of the other. Only the royal family has such ships and only the royal family can enter and be part of the ship. If any other person tried to attack or harm the ship it would set off its own defense systems.
There could be no doubt that the ship orbiting the planet was friend and not foe.
The time had arrived. I would be leaving this planet soon for somewhere in space. This journey would take many long years and I did not fully understand how this time travel would take place. Would we still need the ship that was beneath the cave or could we use the ship that now was orbiting my planet?
Sofia and Ely felt that they needed to be near the communication transmitter; it was as if the ship was calling them and it was their duty to be touching the device. I still had my doubts and suspected that there could be someone aboard this new ship that wanted to cause harm to my Sofia. It was my nature to assume danger as I had spent so many years in exile while being hunted.
Sofia and Ely each placed their hands on the panel that was attached to the transmitter. It was something that I had never seen before. Their hands both molded into the equipment as if the ship and the two of them were one being. It was obviously not painful as the expressions on their faces was nothing but joyful. There were no spoken words, and yet their hands stayed inside the equipment for a long while. As the timed passed I became worried that maybe this was all a trick to somehow capture them.
Finally, they both removed their hands and came to sit next to me. Both of them seemed relieved and each had a smile across their face as if all of the past months of worry were gone.
The ship carried repair parts and many of the rest of the royal family from Armis. The ship orbiting the planet would be able to carry many of the people here but not all. However, the ship that was buried within the cave could be repaired using the spare parts from the other ship. Sofia explained that since each ship was part of the other, each understood what was needed to fix the damage and the parts would be created for that purpose. It was yet another of those mysteries that I would some day understand but for now it was enough for me to comprehend that all those who now wished to leave this planet could either travel in the new ship in orbit or within the old ship inside the cave.
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Chapter 28:
What do you take when you leave your home? I was not the type of species that lived in once place very long. Yet I had belongings that I should consider if they were to be brought with us. There was limited space on the ship so each person was given a ratio of space for their personal effects.
Sofia, Ely and I went out to a safe location one evening to finally meet the group from the orbiting ship. All of us were excited yet nervous to meet these strangers. Sofia explained that each of the “mother” ships carried a sm
aller transporter ship used for moving between the main ship and the planet. This would be how our people and all of their belongs would be transported.
As the time of the ships arrival approached I was worried that the local village would see the strange ship and cause an issue. As always this would not be the case. I did not see the ship arrive. I felt the change in the electrical current around me and I could feel the air movement but my eyes did not see the ship land. I only felt Sofia’s hand as it squeezed mine and her words that she whispered in my ear stating that they had landed.
My ears did not hear the ship nor did my eyes see any light coming from the ship. I was aware of something that changed near us and it set me on alert. I was in protection mode as my senses could tell someone was close by. Then they appeared. They were just a mist milky thin cloud that was not all the way sure it wanted to be a cloud. The visitors became more solid as each minute passed. Soon there were several Armis people kneeling in front of Sofia and Ely.
Sofia and Ely asked the strangers to rise. Sofia and Ely hugged each one and then turned to introduce me as her mate. The strangers greeted me in the same fashion as their Queen. Sofia was pleased to speak to the visitors from the ship. They were indeed from the royal family. They were not related in blood to her but were what we would have called “slaves” or “servants” to the royal family. They were trusted with the task of keeping any and all of the royal family safe and well cared for.
We escorted the newly found friends to our cave. Their ship carried all of the repair parts that we needed to complete the final preparations on our ship. I still was not sure how all of this traveling was to occur. How would we be able to take all of the Armis people along with what remained of my species and get them either on the ship within the cave or transport them up to the mother ship that was orbiting our planet? There were many such questions that I had formulated in my head.
The repairs on the ship within the cave continued for more then another month. The ship was not in as good of shape as Sofia had led me to believe. The repairs were taking time because some of the spare parts had to be retrofitted to our older model ship. The area around the ship had to be cleared away without causing structural damage to the cave surrounding it. Sofia explained to me that the ship that lay far beneath the surface would not need to break through the ground. The ship would hover for a period of time in the cleared space and then rematerialize up in orbit. This way no one on the planet would be alarmed by seeing a ship explode up from the ground and sail up into the air. All of this technology would take some getting use to.
Sofia and I finally had some time to ourselves. We would often take the horses for a ride out into the forest so that we could be alone. It was nice to be able to have Sofia to myself only. She was so busy with the ship’s requirements that we had not had time to share our love together.
One night was going to be special for us as we both knew that in a short time we would be leaving this planet. I noticed that our horses were playing in the field near our home. I found out that we would be allowed space to bring them with us to the new world. Sofia explained that since one of the horses was a true Armis that we could not leave them behind. I had also found out that our horses were considered to be mated now and that the Armis mare was carrying a baby. It was news to everyone that the two were able to breed and create a child. It was not something that had ever occurred.
Ely had discussed this with me such a long time ago when his son was born. Sofia understood at that time that she would never hold a child of her own because she would not choose a true Armis as her mate now that she had chosen me.
The news of the pending arrival of the baby horse gave new-found hope for the Armis people. We would be taking other animals with us in the ship because some of the Armis wanted to change into those species so that new life would come with our ship to the new world.
Sofia and I sat on the blanket near our favorite stream in the forest. The night was chilly as the months had turned from summer into fall. Soon there would be snow on the ground. It was hoped that the repair of the ship would be completed before the first snowfall of the season.
Sofia had packed up most of her clothes but this night she was wearing a soft white dress with blue and red stripes that were wrapped around the waist and arms. A silk ribbon was used as the shoulder strap and the dress was so long that it had draped over the side of the horse as we rode here. Sofia had her hair down using a flower reed to pull her bangs to the side of her face.
Over the past months I had noticed how tired she had looked but not this particular night. She sparkled as much as I could remember she ever did. I had taken care not to drink from her life force for many months as I knew that she needed her strength to attend to her family. This night, however, was a night for me to drink from her. I had already planned on allowing myself this one thing before we left on our journey. I feared the time that I would be in the ship and what the effect of this journey may have on my kind. Sofia did not seem to be concerned and kept telling me that when we were ready to board the ship she would explain all of this to me.
But not this night – this would be our night together. We had chosen this place in the forest because we knew we could be alone for the entire night and no one would bother us. We could have traveled to one of our villas but neither of us thought that to be a good idea. No – it was important to both of us that we share our time together out in the wild.
I sat watching Sofia stare up at the night sky and could not help but reach up to touch her face. Her skin reflected the stars and moon. I could see her markings more clearly as they crossed along her neck and arms. The thought then occurred to me that perhaps all of the other markings that Sofia carried on her body would also be visible to me this night.
Sofia turned her face to me and smiled. Again I had the feeling that she read my mind. She stood up and pulled me up with her. She kissed me. I felt her arms go around my back and I did the same to her. I could feel the rush of power as we kissed. I heard an owl up high in the trees and the frogs in the water near by.
Sofia asked me if I trusted her completely. There should not have been any doubt. My need for her was showing and I’m sure she could feel that since I was pressed so close to her. Somehow my shirt had gotten unbuttoned and her dress was untied and pulled down slightly below her shoulders.
Our mouths were joined and I could taste her as if she and I had never kissed before. Then something happened that is most difficult to explain in words. I felt the need to drink from her at that moment and yet I did not want to spoil our time together by placing my teeth deep within her skin. The desire to taste her blood grew as if it would consume me at any moment.
I felt the air around us change. There was a soft glimmer of light all around us. I sensed that our clothes had some how been removed and we were standing naked in the circle of light. Sofia pulled away from our kiss and looked at me for a brief moment and we both started to fade away. I still held her body and could feel her skin and yet we were no longer solid. My body was feeding like I had placed my teeth over her skin somewhere. I could feel the blood as it entered my body and yet I was staring eye to eye with my Sofia. I had not moved and yet the blood was filling my body as each second passed.
Our night was spent together in this translucent state for many hours and when we finally could no longer take our passion we rematerialized as solid beings wrapped up in the blanket still naked in the forest. It was near dawn and we managed to locate our clothes, which had been scattered all across the clearing.
Some of the clothing was not wearable any longer but enough existed in whole pieces that I could dress my Sofia. I was left with only my pants as all of the rest of my clothes had been torn to shreds. We laughed out loud and decided that perhaps we should have taken our clothes off before she melded us together.
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Chapter 29:
The day
finally arrived. The months of preparations were complete. Ely and the rest of the families had readied the ship for our travel to Armis. Ely and the other leaders spent much time trying to locate all of the remaining Armis species that live on my planet to ensure each had a way to return home should they desire that choice.
Sofia and Ely had informed me about the way that this long flight would be possible. They had a device called a Kyro tube. Within this device a vapor wraps around you and within your body. Your body slows and changes into a deep existence. It is like sleeping but your body does not age or change during this time. This would allow us to travel for many years and not change or feel any of the effects of the space travel.
Supplies had been loaded and all those who wished to return to Armis had arrived and were placed in their Kyro tubes for the flight home. Many of my own species showed up; some of them came alone and others found mates among the Armis as I did with my Sofia. Some of the people had departed for the orbiting ship the night before and many more were scheduled to leave on the transport shuttle each hour.
Sofia, myself, Ely and his family along with some of the other royal servants were to take the ship that lay buried deep within the cave. Ely said that he had come to believe that this ship was home to him and he wished to leave this planet in the care of something that had taken care of him and most of the rest of the Armis people for so long. The Armis believed that all things, including their ship, were somehow connected to one another and no one wanted to be departed from this ship.
