Kahm

by T. J. Quinn

  There was no sign of Moyana or her vehicle by the time they reached the beach. Kahm scanned the whole area and found absolutely nothing. Getting more and more worried, Kahm decided to contact Moyana, but she didn’t take the call. He could tell she was still in Sumirion, but not much more.

  Frustrated, he paced the beach, trying to think clearly. Going after Moyana would be a waste of time, she wouldn’t admit to anything, and he was sure she didn’t have Selena with her, she was smarter than that. That meant she had to leave Selena somewhere.

  “Do you think she took Selena to Sumitera?” Exion asked, looking at the dense forest on the other continent.

  “She wouldn’t dare…” he muttered, but the more he thought about it, the more sense it made. He remembered talking to Moyana about the other continent and mentioning the dangers that entailed crossing the sea to get there.

  “I think she would dare todo anything if it suited her plans. And getting rid of Selena seemed her main plan,” his man pointed out, revealing just how clearly he had read Moyana and her intentions.

  “We should go there…” Stenn suggested.

  “We can’t… not without asking permission first,” Exion pointed out. “If Moyana truly crossed the sea and penetrated their territory, we’re in deep trouble as it is. Following her steps would only bring us more problems.”

  Kahm cursed, but Exion was right. The people in Sumitera were very strict, and Moyana’s violation of their rules would endanger everybody’s existence at Terrion. They had to get in touch with them and apologize for her actions before it was too late. Only then would they be able to ask for their permission to look for Selena.

  Cursing all the stars in the universe, Kahm picked up his communication device and called Goln. He was the representative of the people leaving on Terrion and the only one allowed to contact Sumitera.

  Kahm rapidly explained the whole situation to the other man, and Goln promised to get in touch with the people in Sumitera.

  “Please, find your friend and make sure she leaves Sumirion. We don’t need people threatening our lives in Terrion,” the man demanded, and Kahm had to agree.

  “I’ll take care of that immediately. Please, let me know when I’m allowed to go find my wife.”

  “You’re aware she doesn’t have many chances of surviving her time on Sumitera,” Goln said, in a stern tone.

  “I’m aware of the danger she’s in, believe me. Either way, I want to go find her, as soon as possible,” he insisted. The iron band around his heart squeezed harder, and he had to struggle to hold on to the thread of self-control he had left. He wanted to jump on his vehicle and go looking for his wife, caring less about the consequences.

  But he had a lot of friends on this land, innocent people that didn’t deserve to pay the consequences of Moyana’s actions.

  “Certainly. I’ll let you know.”

  Kahm left Exion at the beach with Stenn, just in case Selena showed up, while he headed straight to the docking bay. He was sure he was going to find Moyana still there, waiting for the results of her actions.

  He wasn’t wrong. He found her on the vessel she had used to travel to Sumirion.

  “Kahm, what a surprise. What are you doing here?” she asked, with a fake innocent smile.

  “You know exactly what I’m doing here, Moyana. What have you done to Selena?” he asked in an ice-cold tone.

  “To your wife? I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

  “You can’t fool me, Moyana.”

  She sighed dramatically. “I wasn’t hoping I wouldn’t have to tell you this, but you’re as stubborn as always,” she said, in a fake, condescending tone. “I made your ‘wife’ the proposal of her life, and she didn’t hesitate to accept it.”

  “What are you talking about?” he asked, frowning, not believing a word she was saying. Selena hated Moyana, she wouldn’t have accepted any proposal coming from her.

  “I offered her enough credits for her to settle and a new life wherever she wanted. I even offered her to pay her ticket out of here, to the planet of her choice and she accepted my offer,” she informed, with a scornful smile on her face. “She left about an hour ago,” she concluded.

  Kahm was amazed at how far Moyana would go to get what she wanted. Did she really expect him to believe such nonsense? Even if he didn’t know what he knew, he would never think Selena would trust the other woman. “Do you really think I would believe a word of that story?” he asked her, furious. “Your vehicle was seen heading towards the beach, on my property, a few hours ago,” he added. “I know exactly what you did. And your little prank might cause all of us on this continent a lot of trouble, but more importantly, it might cause Selena’s death,” he continued, towering the woman and letting her know just how furious he was. “I told you Sumitera was forbidden territory, but you ignored my warnings and crossed the sea, didn’t you? All you wanted was to harm Selena.”

  “You can’t prove any of that,” she grumbled, taking a step back, as she realized he hadn’t believed her.

  “I don’t have to, Moyana. You’re no longer welcome on this planet, so, please leave as soon as possible, or Terrion’s patrol will make sure you do,” he warned her. “And know this, Moyana, if Selena is harmed in any way, you better find the best hideout in the universe, because I’ll personally hunt you down and make you pay for it.”

  “Why do you even care? She’s just a sex doll you bought to keep you warm during the cold nights to this forsaken planet,” she ranted.

  Furious, Kahm closed the distance between them and wrapped his powerful hand around Moyana’s throat, squeezing it hard enough for her to know he meant every word he was saying. “She’s the woman of my life and your opinion of her matters nothing to me. With your actions, you erased any caring feelings I still had for you, so consider yourself warned.” He released her. “Now, get out of here and don’t you dare ever coming back.”

  With those words, Kahm stormed out of her ship, straight to the post of Terrion’s patrollers. He wanted to make sure they contacted her and ordered them to leave Sumirion.

  He was on his way back to his farm when he received the call from Goln. “I’ve talked with the leader of the people in Sumitera. They aren’t happy with your friend breaking the rules, but they won’t allow you to go looking for your wife,” he said the minute he answered the call.

  Kahm almost dropped the phone. “What? You can’t be serious. How can they…”

  Goln interrupted him. “Let me finish Kahm. You know very well just how delicate this is,” the man said, trying to calm Kahm down. “They will send a search party looking for her. When they find her, they will bring her to the beach on your property.”

  “Am I supposed to just stay still and wait for them to find her?” he ranted, feeling how the band around his heart painfully squeezed it.

  “Yes, you are. I want your word you won’t cross over to Sumitera, Kahm. Otherwise, I’ll have you arrested until we have news from them,” Goln warned him.

  “You’re asking me too much.”

  “I know, I’m well aware of it, but it’s my job to make sure we all have a peaceful coexistence with these people. You know this doesn’t make me happy, but there isn’t much we can do.”

  “Damn it, Goln, if they don’t find her tonight, she’ll perish in those woods,” he yelled at the other man.

  “I’m well aware of that. They told me they would go looking for her immediately. We have to trust they will.”

  “Tell them I’ll provide them with meat for a solar cycle if they find her safe and sound,” he offered, desperate.

  Goln sighed. “I will, but you know very well how little they care about those things.”

  “Just do your best and let me know. I’ll be at the beach.”

  “Give me your word of honor you won’t go to Sumitera, Kahm,” the man insisted,

  “You have it. Just help me get my wife back.”

  “I’ll do my best.”

  Chapter
Fifteen

  Selena looked around trying to decide what to do. Staying where she in the woods wouldn’t help her much. If there were wild animals around, she would have nothing to protect herself from them. She dreaded the idea of moving away from there, but she didn’t have any alternative. She had to find a shelter and soon before the night fell.

  She had no idea what lies Moyana would be telling Kahm, so she couldn’t just stay there and wait for him to come rescue her. That might not happen. Her heart ached at that possibility, but she knew he still cared for the other woman and he might believe whatever story she told him.

  She looked up, trying to determine the sun’s position, but the dense foliage of the trees stopped her from seeing it. She could tell it was still day, but not much more. She looked around trying to find the signs that would indicate Moyana’s way, but again, she saw nothing.

  Cursing her fate and hating Moyana more and more, she started walking, attentive to her surroundings. She should look for a clearing and try to check on the sun’s position, and start from there.

  The woods were so dense, that after a few minutes of struggling across it she had several scratches on her hands. The jumpsuit protected her a lot, but she was sure she would have an extensive collection of bruises when the day was over.

  After what seemed an eternity, she finally reached a clearing. Relieved, she was about to run towards it, when her instinct stopped her in her tracks. Something was wrong. There was absolutely nothing in the clearing. Gulping, she took a deep breath and picking up a small rock from the ground, she threw it to the clearing.

  Astounded, she watched the rock being immediately sucked in. It was some sort of quicksand, with distinct emphasis on the quick part. Letting out a small cry of sheer frustration, she walked towards the edge of the clearing, looking for a better view of the sky, but she wasn’t able to see the sun. It took her a few moments to control the desperation trying to crawl into her heart before she was able to move again.

  She wasn’t giving up. She would find a way out of that place. Wiping the couple of tears that had rolled down her cheeks, she moved away from the clearing.

  Selena must have walked for a few hours before she allowed herself to get some rest. She examined the ground thoroughly around a tall tree before she let herself lean her back against the tree trunk.

  She was feeling hungry and thirsty, but so far she hadn't seen water or a fruit tree. The trees around her had none, and though the bushes had berries, she didn’t dare to touch them. She didn’t recognize any of them, and she still wasn’t that desperate.

  She closed her eyes and rested her head against the tree, praying to all gods in the universe to help her find a way out of that place.

  She must have dozed for a few minutes because when she came to herself, she had several lianas around her body. Scared, she tried to free herself, but the minute she moved, the lianas moved as well, tensing their grip around her, and before she was able to do a thing she was pulled up, and tightly tied against the tree trunk, with her arms pulled over her head.

  She cried for help as loud as she could, tugging at her restraints, trying to free herself, but it was useless. Whatever caught her, had done a pretty good job. She wouldn’t be able to free herself without some help.

  She cried for help again, at that point, not concerned with what other creatures she attracted. She just wanted to free herself.

  A few moments later, she felt something crawling up her legs and sliding down her arms, and she cried louder. She was sure it was some sort of snakes, but when she looked, she saw just lianas, though these looked a bit different from the ones tying her.

  The one crawling up her legs reached her thigh and after circling it a few times, she felt the sting of like a million needles.

  Desperate, she tried to move her leg to get rid of it, but it was impossible. Just a few seconds later, she felt the one that had been sliding down her arms, reach her neck and repeating the process. The damn thing was sucking out her blood.

  She cried louder, but it was useless. She started to feel weaker and weaker, and her last thoughts went to Kahm, and how much she wanted to live to be with him, to love him. Sobbing, she closed her eyes and stopped struggling.

  Her whole body hurt as if she had been hit by a truck a high speed. You weren’t supposed to feel pain when you died, right? Then why was she in so much pain? She groaned and moved her head, just to still it again. Moving made the pain a lot worse.

  “Welcome back,” a woman’s voice greeted her.

  Slowly, she flickered, trying to see where she was, and when she was sure there was no pain in the action, she opened her eyes.

  The woman in front of her was a total stranger. Selena had never seen anyone like her, so far. She was humanoid, but her skin was greyish, with lighter spots all over her head, neck, and shoulders. Her nose was almost flat and her mouth small, with thin lips, and as far as she could see, she had no hair. But it was her eyes what stood out. They were larger than you would expect in a face like hers, and they were completely dark.

  “Where am I?” she managed to mumble.

  “You’re in Sumitera. We found you a few days ago, captured by a Genus, one of our carnivorous plants,” the woman informed her.

  Selena closed her eyes, worried. This couldn’t be good news. She had escaped the plant just to fall on the Sumirion’s people’s clutches.

  She opened her eyes again. She would have to face whatever came her way. “Thank you for saving me.”

  “It was our pleasure. Your husband asked us to look for you,” she explained.

  “Is he here?” she asked, trying to sit in the small bed she was in. But the rush of pain made her lay still.

  The woman caressed her forehead. “Stay still. The Genus’ toxin is still in your body, and until you’ve managed to expel it, you’ll be in pain.”

  “Yes… it hurts…” she mumbled.

  “Your husband isn’t here. We don’t allow other species to enter our continent. The Arghearian that brought you here broke that rule,” the woman explained. “She has been asked to leave the planet, and she’s long gone.”

  Selena nodded, trying not to panic. Would they make her pay for Moyana’s crime?

  “What will happen to me?” she finally asked.

  The woman looked at her in silence for a few moments. “We’re still deliberating on that. Right now, the only thing that matters is to heal you. Try to get some rest, I’ll come back later,” she suggested, caressing Selena’s forehead.

  Her touch induced Selena to close her eyes and soon she was sound asleep. When she opened her eyes again, she was alone.

  Curious, she looked around, but the dim light didn’t allow her to see much of the room’s contents. It actually looked more like a tent than a room, but she couldn’t be sure.

  Slowly, she tried to move, and this time, she didn’t feel any pain. That was a relief. She was about to get up when someone raised the tent’s fabric and entered it.

  “How are you feeling?” it was the same woman.

  “Much better, thank you. The pain is gone,” she told her, with a faint smile.

  “Yes, the toxin has been completely expelled.” She smiled, introduced herself. “My name is Glynoy, and I’m one of the tribe’s healer.”

  “Thank you for all your help, Glynoy. My name is Selena.”

  She nodded. “The council of elders would like to have a word with you, do you think you can handle that?” the woman asked, standing next to her.

  There was no use delaying the inevitable. She sat on the bed, happy she was still wearing her jumpsuit. “Yes, of course.”

  “Good,” the woman cheered. “But you’ll need to change. Females aren’t allowed to wear pants.”

  She opened her mouth to protest, but she rapidly realized that wouldn’t help her cause. “Sure, I wouldn’t like to break any more rules.”

  The woman smiled and handed her a dress similar to the one she was wearing. It was strapless and covered
her whole body like a second skin, leaving nothing to the imagination.

  Feeling a bit uncomfortable, she followed the other woman out of the tent. The sun was setting in the sky, but there was enough light for her to take a good look at the place.

  There were about thirty tents, similar to those she had seen in pictures in the history books, used by the Arabic people. They were on a river shore, surrounded by the woods.

  Glynoy guided her to the largest tent, and soon they were surrounded by a large group of people. All women dressed like her and Glynoy, but the males only wore some sort of loincloth that barely covered their genitals, but that didn’t hide their long and thick tail. A lot taller than the females, they were quite impressive, with their massively muscled bodies. Their heads, unlike the females, had some thick crests, that fell down their back.

  “Welcome to our home,” the male sitting at the back of the tent, greeted her. Next to him, there were a few other men, but they didn’t look a day older than the rest of the people in the room.

  Selena guessed they aged a lot slower than people on Earth.

  “Thank you and thank you for saving my life,” she replied, in a respectful tone.

  “You should thank Zag, he was the one that found you,” the man informed her pointing out one of the men in the crowd.

  “Thank you,” she said again, addressing the man.

  “Since he was the one saving you, he has claimed you to be his mate,” the elder continued, and Selena almost passed out.

  She couldn’t have heard him right.

  “But… but I’m already married…” she mumbled.

  “Whatever relationship you had outside Sumitera has no importance for us, unless there are children involved,” the elder continued.

  She paled, even more, her heart pounding so fast in her chest, she was sure everyone in the room could hear it.

  She started shaking her head, but Glynoy, standing beside her, answered for her. “She’s with child, Tristud.”