Serpents of the Abyss (The Darvel Exploratory Systems #2)

by S. J. Sanders

  Blazing pink eyes regarded him and then his female, nostrils flaring, before the male’s tiny body darted between his mate’s legs. Lori cooed down at the hatchling and bent forward. Slengral opened his mouth to warn her to watch for the fangs, but the little one slipped up almost eagerly into her arms, his thin tail wrapping around her chest as he nestled against the fleshy human breasts.

  With a foolish smile that he had never before seen on the male’s face, Daskh peeled a fruit and offered it to the small beast. The hatchling eyed it, his little body easing forward against Lori’s arms for only a moment before his small, clawed hand snatched up the fruit.

  Lori brushed her head against the top of the male’s small crests. “What in the world were you doing in the ceiling?”

  Pink eyes shot back up to her face, the male’s thin body shivering anxiously. Slengral could smell the fear coming off of him, and it did something unpleasant to his heart. It softened toward the hatchling. He shook his head. This was not his hatchling; he should not feel any urges, but it seemed that his instincts disagreed. The male was underfed and clearly not being properly taken care of.

  “I was put up there,” the small voice whispered with a noticeable quiver. “I was supposed to find the female for Father.” His jaw trembled with emotion. “He left me there.”

  Daskh frowned down at the small Seshanamitesh. “You are too young to be parted from your mother. Where is she?”

  “Died. Father takes care of me,” the hatchling responded.

  “Fine job he does of it too,” Kehtal growled, watching the little one tear into the fruit hungrily. “When did you last eat?”

  The hatchling shrugged his wings.

  Slengral sighed as he watched Lori draw the hatchling closer to her in an affectionate embrace. There would be no parting with the little beast now. “What is your name?” he asked gruffly.

  Small wings shrugged again. “He calls me ‘nestling’ or ‘useless.’ I help him with his hunting.” A fearful look passed over the male’s face and he shivered again.

  Slengral inwardly cursed. The male had not even saw fit to name his own offspring and clearly had not fed him. The only use the male made of him apparently was as bait, in this case a softer prize less likely to tear the little one up… Slengral’s mate.

  Lori eyed the males surrounding her, and he knew what she was going to say before the words even left her mouth.

  “Guys, this changes everything.”

  He sighed again, his wing encircling his mate and the half-starved hatchling. It did indeed.

  Chapter 32

  Daskh smiled down at the hatchling in Lori’s arms as she fussed over him. This was natural. Seshanamitesh young, while mentally developing quickly, were small until they became juveniles. There would be plenty of season cycles for her to hold him until then, and it was obvious that Lori planned to be there for every one of those cycles. Hopefully by the time the small male became a juvenile, her nest would be full of her own brood to care for.

  Hers and Slengral’s, he reminded himself.

  At her side, his friend was clearly having a difficult time adjusting to the presence of the young male, but that was natural. Seshanamitesh males were territorial by nature, and that extended toward their mates and offspring. Few males would willingly take in a hatchling sired by another. That his friend was exhibiting signs of protectiveness and nurturing toward the little male, however reluctant, Daskh considered a good sign. The fact that Daskh was longing for it to be him was not.

  Kehtal had tried to warn him the moment he had noted Daskh getting attached to the small human, but he had not wanted to listen. He had been enjoying the time with Lori, pretending that nothing would change. But it had. She and Slengral were now mated in truth, and Daskh was forced to sit back and watch while his friend had the privilege of adjusting to a new life as a mate, and now as a father, too.

  He had everything that Daskh had ever wanted.

  He could not help but feel resentful, especially as the other male made certain that he did not get too close to Lori. Even to the point where Slengral was keeping his tail between them.

  He swallowed those feelings, aware of Kehtal’s sympathetic gaze resting on him. He did not want or need it. All he wanted was Lori. It was only his unwillingness to betray his friend and hurt the female that kept him from stealing her. Stuck as he was in an impossible situation, he made an effort to ignore both Kehtal, whose knowing gaze he wanted to flatten, and the hostility brewing within him toward Slengral.

  “He should have a proper name,” he grunted, handing another piece of fruit to the hatchling.

  Lori nodded. “I agree. What do you think about names?”

  Before Daskh could make a suggestion, Slengral rose up on his tail so that he could lean forward over the tiny male, effectively cutting everyone else off, and hummed thoughtfully.

  Biting back a growl, Daskh broke in with his suggestion.

  “Hashal,” he barked out.

  Lori startled at his sharp tone, but a lovely smile soon graced her face, replacing her surprise. That Slengral turned a dark look upon him, he ignored, enjoying the way she nodded in agreement.

  “I like that. Hashal. What do you think?”

  This time, she looked up at Slengral for affirmation. Daskh watched, curious as to how the male would react. Slengral bristled, scales rattling in irritation as he cut another sharp look at Daskh. He was certain that the male was going to object but then the tension drained from Slengral’s body, and he jerked his head in a nod, his crests flicking reluctantly.

  “It is a good name,” Slengral agreed to Daskh’s surprise.

  Lori beamed down at the hatchling, who was currently chewing on the fruit in his claws, uninterested in the conversation around him. Pink eyes lifted to meet the female’s gaze, his thin wings folding around his small chest.

  “Well, what do you say? Do you like the name Hashal?” she asked him.

  A considering expression settled on his face, and his delicate crests flicked quickly as if uncertain about how his answer would be received. It pained Daskh to see the little male so frightened of everything, and he wondered exactly what sort of life Hashal had to make him so anxious. The male’s father had a lot to answer for if he escaped from the clutches of the shinara.

  There was hope for Hashal, though. It would take time and a lot of love and patience for him to outgrow his instinctive nervous reactions, but it would happen. Daskh was determined to be near enough to see that day even as much as he was determined to find a way to be as near to Lori as possible.

  “Hashal it is then,” Lori murmured, giving Daskh a warm look.

  He felt his chest expand with emotion. He felt like he had contributed in an important way, and that it was acknowledged. Her mate pretended not to notice the affection she gave him as he lightly combed his claws through her fur, but Daskh knew that his friend did not miss anything. It did give him hope, however. Slengral might dislike the closeness that he shared with Lori, but the male still needed him, and Lori trusted his company. Because of that, Daskh’s position in the nest was secure for the time being.

  Although he wanted to be at her other side, pressing as close to her as her mate, he positioned himself as close to Lori as Slengral would permit him. It was just outside of any reasonable reaching distance, but close enough that he could take comfort in her scent and the heat emanating from her small body. More than anything he was glad to have the privilege of being in the nest. That Kehtal was still eyeing him with concern, however, annoyed him.

  He was well aware of the fact that his continued attachment to Lori was unwise, even more so since Slengral had become aware of it. All the warnings and worry from his friend would change nothing. The most they did was serve as a constant reminder of the one thing he did not want to think about. He did not wish to think about his temporary place in Lori’s nest anymore than he wanted to think of what would occur on the next waking.

  The thought of watching Lori disappe
ar into the human nest made his tail want to curl in on itself. How would he be able to allow it? Even though he understood the reason why, he could not understand how Slengral could be so calm. Even more so now that they had a hatchling in the nest that was already quickly becoming attached to her. Within minutes of filling his belly, Hashal had coiled up in her arms.

  He refused to be jealous of a hatchling.

  “When you go to your colony tomorrow, what shall be done with him?” he muttered as he dipped his chin toward the little male.

  Lori’s blunt teeth sank into her lower lip, and she sighed. “As much as I hate to leave him, he certainly can’t come with us.” Her eyes turned up to him hopefully. “Would you and Kehtal keep an eye on him?”

  Daskh was not surprised at the request, and privately preened a little at the responsibility. He had a soft spot for hatchlings, and it did not hurt that it would make him all the more valuable to the nest if he exhibited a willingness and aptitude to assist in Hashal’s care. The quiet regard with which Slengral now eyed him. Kehtal, on the other hand, jerked in surprise, his mouth opening to object when she glanced over at him too with a winsome smile.

  “I’d really feel better knowing there were two people I trusted here to watch Hashal.” She gave the slumbering little male in her lap a fond look. “The last few couple of days have probably been frightening for him. Since I can’t be here, I think he’ll feel safer with more of us here. And it’s just until Slengral and I get back.”

  Kehtal’s eyes fell on the hatchling, and his expression softened ever so slightly. Daskh held back a knowing grin and maintained his usual scowl—keeping his personal thoughts as private as possible—as he enjoyed watching the male succumb to Lori’s wishes. As much as his highly opinionated friend did not care to spend great lengths of time in the nest, it was clear that he not only was also taken in by Hashal but could deny the female nothing.

  The male shot him a questioning look, uncertain as to Daskh’s willingness. The question was reasonable. Daskh had not been parted from Lori’s side for any great length of time since he began tending to her in Slengral’s nest. Kehtal knew him well enough to know that his protective instincts would be objecting strenuously. Everything within him rejected being left in the nest while Lori went above. He doubted anyone could truly know just how much Lori’s trust in him regarding the hatchling’s care meant to him and how that served as a balance for his protective needs. And even if the male did not wish to admit it, he knew that Kehtal was facing a similar struggle of his own for which he was looking to Daskh for guidance.

  At the flick of his crests, signaling his agreement to Kehtal, the male returned his attention to Lori.

  “We will remain,” Kehtal agreed half-heartedly. His tail rippled and snapped with surprise when Lori passed Hashal off to bound to her feet and embrace him, despite her mate’s growl behind her.

  The growl got even louder when she turned to embrace Daskh but stuttered to a stop when she continued to ignore it. The hard focus of the male’s gaze was harder for him to ignore as he opened his arms to her and drew her in close against his chest.

  As he hugged her, Daskh kept his attention focused on Lori’s mate, listening for any warning of attack from the male, as he tried not to lose himself in her arms. As it was, he could not seem to keep his large body from melting into her small one. He did not even realize that the tip of his tail had curled and lifted to cradle her back until she began to pull away.

  The gesture was proprietorial and spoke volumes about his hidden feelings. His eyes flew to Slengral, waiting for the male to charge to oust him from his nest or to challenge him. To his surprise, Slengral did neither. Instead, the male regarded him coldly for a long moment before turning his gaze speculatively to his smiling female as she giggled and ducked up from beneath Daskh’s tail. Those red eyes turned to him again, and Slengral let out a disgusted huff before coiling his tail possessively around his mate.

  She petted it and smiled up at her mate, affirming her affection for him. Daskh’s belly burned with jealousy, the end of his tail, which had been touching her only moments before, tightening as it rolled up as he once again battled the dark urge within him to defeat the male and take his mate. He could feel his gavo quivering with the urge to rise, and he smothered it. Not all males had the sort of control he had, and he would not be failed by it now. To his relief, Lori saved him.

  As quickly as his anger rose, it immediately loosened, tension fleeing from him when her smile turned once more on him, sharing that affection. It felt like the warm brush of night air when hunting above. Comfortable and welcoming. That smile felt like an embrace itself, and he greedily wrapped himself up in it. With that came a certainty that was both welcoming and alarming that he could not go back to a cold, empty existence without her. She pierced the darkness that dwelled within him—within all Seshanamitesh males truthfully—and he could not endure losing that.

  He drew in a steadying breath and prayed to all the gods who slept beneath and rode the above world and skies above that nothing happened to that sweet female while she was parted from him. He doubted anything would be able to control the darkness within him.

  If anything happened to his Lori, the shinara would not have to worry about the human nest because Daskh would destroy it.

  Chapter 33

  Lori squinted at the dual suns dropping low in the horizon as she stepped out from the mouth of the cave. The air, while still very warm, was comfortable and bore a faint smell of perfume coming from a nearby cluster of flowers tucked between nearby rocks. They were just starting to bloom with the retreat of the suns. There was a beauty in the late day that she’d never seen in the rush to and from the mines. Not even her view from her dorm gave her any indication there was any sort of life on the planet.

  With the late hour, the loud machinery was off and the mines now deserted. She had debated trying to approach someone in the mine itself since learning that workers had returned several days ago, but there would have been no avoiding the panic when her mate emerged from the shadows. This still remained the wisest course of action, even if it felt strange to see the mine laying silent. The track from the cave was already partially covered by shifting sands since the crew left. Her eyes followed it until it disappeared into the distance.

  Her drive to get to the colony began to dry up as she stared off into the miles of sand stretching out in front of her. She couldn’t even see the curved top of the dome from where she stood. The distance felt daunting, especially for someone who relied on transports all of her life. Even though she was certain that Slengral planned to carry her, she felt oddly exposed with such a vast distance stretching between them and the colony. The colony hadn’t seemed so far away when she had been riding the transport.

  “Ashlava?” Slengral called to her from where he rested just behind her.

  She could hear the concerned note in his voice. If he had any idea that she was dragging her feet because of a bit of distance, she had no doubt that he would use it as the perfect excuse to snatch her up and search for a safe place to hole up in away from the madness.

  “It’s fine,” she replied as she turned to face him.

  Her breath caught in her throat as her eyes fell on her mate in full light for the first time. He was beautiful! The pink bioluminescence dulled to soft marks running up his body, but his dark scales, which had seemed gray and black in the cave, revealed their true hues in the evening sun. He was dark indigo and a cloudy gray-blue, which was striking against his gavo, that swirled with color despite their duller glow.

  Like her, he had emerged fully from the cave, his large red eyes hidden completely behind a black lid that had descended over them. She was certain, though, that he could see just fine. She could practically feel the weight of his gaze as his entire attention focused on her, his head cocking with curiosity.

  “I’m fine,” she reiterated as she smoothed her hands over her uniform. The thermo regulatory suit under it felt uncomfortabl
y tight after weeks of not wearing it.

  It wasn’t so much the colony itself that made her feel like she was breaking out in hives. No, it was realizing at the ninth hour that she—a virtual nobody in the colony—was actually going to have to speak to the lead supervisor and convince him to not only temporarily halt mining but to speak with the shinara. And while doing so not betray that she had an illegal mating with an alien. Her stomach rolled. In all of her many days desperate to get back, why had this never occurred to her?

  “We should probably get going,” she mumbled, glancing up at the suns. “I need to get there before it gets dark and security detail increases for the night shift.”

  Slengral rumbled in agreement. “And to avoid the hunters,” he replied in a tight voice. His black eyes narrowed on her. “I will not leave you to walk alone if there are hunters.”

  “Yeah, let’s avoid that,” she hastily agreed.

  The last thing she needed was one or more Seshanamitesh trying to pluck her from the ground while she tried to get back inside the dome. That part was going to be hard enough as it was. There were going to be questions—and likely weapons being pointed at her. After all, how often does a missing, presumed dead employee walk back across the rock from the mines?

  She was pretty sure given the state of things with the Seshanamitesh, some of who had probably been picking off lone humans for some time, that the answer to that was… never.

  Her mate’s head jerked in a clumsy nod, his crests flicking in agreement as he opened his arms for her. Lori didn’t hesitate to step into his embrace. She breathed a soft sigh when his arms closed firmly around her, drawing her closely to him. After being underground for so many days, rather than the relief she had expected to feel, she felt frighteningly exposed. In the tight circle of his arms, she felt safe.

  Everywhere their bodies pressed together, she could feel the slight expansion as Slengral drew in a deep breath. It wasn’t just his chest, but rather it seemed as if every part of his body inhaled at once. She knew that it was because his kind had internal air sacks, but it still felt strange every time that she experienced it up close and personal.