by Kylie Gold
My eyes studied the details of his red face as he slept. He was gorgeous even for human standards. Last night had felt so right, as though it was meant to happen. And yet as I laid there, looking at his sleeping body, worries filled my mind. Had I betrayed my people by helping them fight? At the moment it had felt right like I had regained my morality by helping the Navani strike back after what the locals had dragged her and her crew into doing. But in retrospect, human lives were lost because of me. Dead bodies were lying on the jungle floor from the attacks of the Navani because I told them about guerilla warfare. And if they had been the remaining crew members? My heart couldn’t even bear the thought. Laying there torturing myself was doing nothing but trying to place false guilt in myself. Who was to say those human lives lost were more precious than the Navani? And sleeping with Dracon hadn’t hurt anyone, if anything it perhaps added insult to injury—helping take down the humans and then having sex with the enemy.
I had to distract myself from the thoughts, I felt like I would soon be going in vicious circles and I didn’t want that. Slowly and carefully, I moved from the bed, not wanting to wake him from his sleep. I first searched for my bra and underwear, finding both and slipping them on. Ugh, that was one thing I wished for from Harp—clean clothes. Still pushing the thoughts away, I walked into the bathroom. The bathroom was rather similar to those of humans, just things had different shapes, made of different materials, and by no means had the amount of clutter that humans had in their home. The water system was unique, seeming to be almost ancient looking with the pipes being made of wood but worked rather effectively. The sink was perfectly round and no bigger than a mixing bowl, with a single hollowed out piece of wood coming through the wall to act as a faucet. There was a small handle just above it, pulling it up allowed the water to flow down into the sink. The ingenuity of the Navani was really eye opening. Humans had been wasteful their entire existence, and from what I had heard about our first planet was practically a horror story. Just destruction and greed laid in the wake of human existence.
In the center of the back wall of the bathroom was another door. I walked to it and peered in. It was a small, closet-like room as a shower. The only light in it came from a skylight. The walls were wooden, as were the floors just like the rest of the hut—but the wooden floors were coated in something that made it look a little slippery; perhaps some sort of treatment to keep the wood from rotting. The only things in the shower was a drain in the middle of the floor, a large piece of hollowed wood was high on the wall, having the same set up as the sink except it had two handles below it with one being further to the left, and a shelf below the faucet which looked like some kind of soap. A shower sounded so wonderful. Before then, I had only been able to give myself a bird bath sort of washing in the brief trips I was allowed to go to the bathroom. Before last night, Dracon hadn’t trusted me completely and had every right not to. But he was asleep and I was getting a shower.
Taking off my bra and underwear, I walked into the small room and looked about. It was so strange to shower somewhere so naturalistic. The modern showers I had been in were sleek and robotic. Walking a couple of steps to the faucet, I reached to the handles and pulled the one directly under the faucet. Cold water began to fall like a waterfall from the wide-mouthed faucet. It was a little shocking at first, the cold water, but it was refreshing nonetheless. I leaned my face back and allowed the water to flow over my face and through my hair. The thick curls had been beyond control from not being able to actually shower the last few days. Though the cold water was refreshing at first, it quickly became bone chilling and I looked at the handles. I had no idea what the other one did, but I figured may as well try it to see if it was warm water. Reaching a hand over, I pulled it down and the water stopped flowing for a moment. I could actually hear something cut on from behind the wall, and then the water began to pour down again—this time it was much warmer. Something told me that behind that wall was something similar to what they used for lights and weapons, only being used to warm the water then. Once again, I was amazed by the advancements the Navani had, yet didn’t seem to damage the environment at all.
I took my time showering, making sure I was completely clean before reluctantly turning off the water. I stepped back out into the bathroom and grabbed one of the linen towels he had stacked neatly on a shelf. I looked down to my bra and panties in disgust. From how clean I felt after the shower, the thought of putting on used clothes was repulsive. Perhaps I could just go without those and maybe find something else to wear; with the locals not being fond of me, I didn’t see how that was possible unless Dracon miraculously had female clothes. After I dried my hair with the towel, I wrapped it securely around my body and walking out of the bathroom.
I merely gave a glance to the bed to see Dracon still lying in bed. I looked around and noticed his ring sitting on a small table next to the bed. Unable to help myself, I picked it up and examined it. It looked like it was made of bronze with a dark navy face. What was it made of? I couldn’t tell if it was gem or glass, but it was smoothed out. Was this what he used to open the cabinets somehow? In my time spent walking around the front portion of his hut, I had touched the lapis blue covers, but they were solid. And I watched him countless times reach through it to grab something from within. It didn’t seem possible, honestly. The blue walls were solid…
The ring was much wider than any of my fingers, but I had to try it. Looking around the room, I saw a large armoire with the lapis blue door covering it. Walking over to it, I slid the ring onto my middle finger and pressed my ring and index finger to it in order to keep it from slipping off. Hesitantly, I reached towards the armoire, feeling as though it wasn’t going to work. But, with my hand in a fist and ring jutting out, the face of the ring touched to the blue first. Just around the ring, a perfect circle parted to where I could see into the armoire. With wide eyes, my hand slowly went through the hole, the blue parting further and further as my hand stuck in. It was like the lapis material turned into a liquid or something when the ring went to touch it. How did it work like that? How could it go from solid to parting just from having a ring on my finger? My eyes were wide with amazement, moving my hand all around, watching as it parted from my movements. Within the armoire, something caught my eye, but I couldn’t quite make it out. I didn’t want to just go through his things… I was just curious as to how the storage worked. But curiosity had me in a vice grip. I slowly turned my head to look at the bed; Dracon was still asleep. It wouldn’t hurt to just look at one thing, right?
That was all the convincing I apparently had to do. My hand reached further into the cabinet and grabbed what felt like a handle. Pulling it from the storage, I noticed it was one of the traditionally styled swords I had seen some of the other Navani using. It was puzzling to know that a tribe like themselves had harvested energy like lasers to use as weapons, but some still used traditional blades. Laying it flat on my hands before I began to pull it from the sheath. The blade was a dazzling silver and was long and razor sharp just as I had always seen swords. However, his had some sort of writing scorched down the middle of the blade; I assumed it was Navanian. And just behind the writing was a thin blue line that was glowing. What was all this blue stuff? Everything seemed to be blue. The laser weapons, the lights, the armor which coated the cabinets—heck, even the grass was blue. What exactly were they harvesting to give everything that glow? Was it some sort of power source? It had to be if it was in their laser weapons and lights… But what about in that sword, and the armored cabinets? Putting the blade back in the leather sheath, using my hand with the ring to open the cabinet, I placed it back.
When I went to withdraw my hand, I noticed a small metallic black box on one of the other shelves. I reached for it and went to pick it up only to be completely surprised at just how heavy it was. It wasn’t as if it was so heavy I couldn’t pick it up. I could, it was just heavier than I anticipated. Pulling it down from the shelf, my eyes studied the little de
vice. It wasn’t like anything I had seen any of the people of the tribe use. It was solid black except for one side of the cube, that side being a dark silver color. Wat in the world was this thing? My fingertips grazed over the silver surface; the material wasn’t hard, but it wasn’t liquid either. It was just a solid that seemed to be very close to being a liquid, the material seeming to be very responsive to movements. My mind was drawing a blank as to what that little heavy box could be used for. “I believe you have something that belongs to me,” a voice sounded from behind me, causing me to jump from fright. I looked back to find Dracon standing close to me, amusement shining in his eyes from having startled me. He raised a brow with a smirk on his face as he held his hand out. With a heavy sigh, I slipped the ring off my finger and placed it in his hand. He didn’t seem mad about me taking it, just that he wanted it back. The man immediately put it on and began to walk towards the communal area of the hut.
I followed behind him, with the box still in hand. Dracon walked to the fridge and began to pull out things to make breakfast, so I sat at the table with the little device. “What is this exactly?” I called to him.
Dracon looked over and noticed the little black box, his brow raising in surprise, almost as though he forgot about it. “It’s a device we used to use when hunting,” he answered simply. Well wasn’t that informative?
“What does it do?” I asked, my eyes seeming to be indecisive as to whether they wanted to study the little invention, or watch Dracon as he sleepily moved about with his black hair hanging down for really the first time.
He didn’t even turn around, just focusing on his task at hand. “You lay it on the ground and it will make ripples in the silver when something large enough is near to cause vibrations on through the earth. Makes it easier to know if you are near a prey.”
Oh. Well that was really cool. But then his words played back in my head and my brow creased, “You guys used to use it?” I repeated back to him. Was it outdated or something?
Dracon was already searing meat on the stove at that point. He gave a nod and a yawn before starting to speak, “The humans drilling and mining make small vibrations, so it makes the reading from that device inaccurate. We haven’t used those since they arrived here.”
Well, that was crappy. I knew I wasn’t responsible for all of the wrong doings the humans had done on Shaviro, but there was still a sense of guilt with it. I didn’t say anything, at a loss for words. I just moved the device to the side—I would have put it back, but he had the ring. Dracon moved over with a plate of meat and fruit, then two cups of juice. Their diet was certainly very wholesome, only consisting of cooked meats and vegetables with raw fruits; though they did have bread as well, I had some of it at the festival. As he sat, he handed me a fork. I took a bite of the meat and looked to him. He seemed distant, but I couldn’t tell if it was from being sleepy, or if he was upset about something. I smiled softly and spoke, “So what do you do when you aren’t babysitting prisoners?”
Dracon smirked a bit to himself as he drank some of his juice. “I wouldn’t exactly call that babysitting,” he teased, making me smile bigger. So he wasn’t in a bad mood. He then gave a shrug, “Mostly help the tribe where they need it. Hunting, any repairs to huts they need help with. And then, of course, protecting them.”
He was a busy man; I knew that for certain. In just the short time I knew him, Dracon couldn’t stand to sit still for very long. I couldn’t help but tease him a bit, though, “So I suppose my being here is like a vacation for you then.”
His lilac eyes lifted to mine, hints of lust and amusement swimming in them. “I suppose. Just like it is a vacation from, what was it you said, hauling ice? Whatever that means.”
I gave a small laugh, “Yes, because crash landing, being forced against my will to join a militia, getting kidnapped and chained is definitely a vacation.”
“Well after the night you had last night, I would call the beginning just the rough start of a vacation.”
I nearly choked on the bite of food I had in my mouth, my cheeks darkening. Looking up, I just found him grinning so smugly to himself, taking a bite of food. He was a bit arrogant, wasn’t he?
14
Dracon
I had never felt the way I did, in my entire life. This human woman, who I had barely known a few short days, had dug her way under my skin. I didn’t know what caused it, I really didn’t know much about her. It was something not psychical, something not even mental. The feeling wouldn’t shake and I was consumed with my thoughts, not understanding what it was. Before she had assisted us, I knew I was attracted to her in a strange way, but I thought the strange came from her being human. However, even after I accepted that, it lingered. And after I bedded her, it seemed to grow worse. I was actually having to force myself not to touch her that morning after, to remain distant so that I didn’t lose myself in whatever affliction had overcome me.
However, when everything seemed to dwindle down and the tribe seemed to be at peace for once, there was nothing to busy myself with but watch Amelia. We sat in silence at the table for a while as I pretended to be busy with the map for the millionth time. I swore I could feel her thinking to me ‘when are we going to talk about what happened last night’. But I wasn’t ready to discuss it, not until I sorted out what it was I was feeling. If I was being honest with myself, I would have admitted I wanted to claim her as my mate. Something about her made me want to keep her at my side at all times, to protect her at every moment and ravish her at every opportunity. It wasn’t possible, though, not with her being human. The tribe would revolt even if I mentioned it. Amelia and I would both be killed. Maybe I was just going crazy, I didn’t know. I needed counsel, someone to talk to about what I was feeling to tell me if I was crazy or not—but no one would even tolerate to hear it.
As I sat, scrolling endlessly over the map with a feeling of defeat, it dawned on me. Kowlow, the tribe’s shaman, he would listen and wouldn’t act out against me even if he disagreed. Kowlow had always strived to keep peace in the tribe and wouldn’t want something such as mixed emotions to get in the way of that peace. Swiftly I jumped to my feet then, making Amelia flinch from the suddenness. I had no idea how long we had sat there in silence, but it had to have been quite a bit to startle her like that. “I have to go speak with one of the elders of the tribe. I’ll be back in a while. Please stay put,” I informed her, grabbing my sheath and weapon, placing it over my shoulder and headed for the door.
I looked back to her, she sat in her chair and just blinked up at me. I knew it had to have been confusing, but she didn’t seem to question it. “Oh, okay…” she mumbled, sounding a little deflated. I wondered why, but didn’t have the time to ask; with the shaman on my mind, I couldn’t think about anything but getting over to see him. Without another word, I left the hut and begin to walk directly to his home. Kowlow lived on the outer brim of the village, and instead of a hut, he had a teepee. No other Navani’s lived in a cloth styled home, but it suited Kowlow somehow. I couldn’t picture him living in a hut.
Approaching the multicolored home, I called towards it. “Kowlow, are you home?”
There were a couple moments of silence before an elderly, thin, bald Navani came from the tent. He smiled big at me, “Dracon, what brings you here?”
I had no idea how to begin, I really should have thought that portion through before coming straight here. “I need your counsel for something personal,” I spoke, wanting to be vague while out in the open.
He seemed to get the message, nodding his head and waving at me to follow him, “Then come on in, my boy.” Kowlow held the cloth flap open for me to enter. Ducking my head, I walked into the tipi. It had been so long since I had been there, I had nearly forgotten what it looked like. Cloth of every color hung about the walls of the home, plush pillows and detailed carpets covered the floor. He guided me over to sit among the pillows, the old man plopping down on one as well. “So, what is troubling you, boy?” he asked, lo
oking to me with kind silver eyes.
A shaky breath escaped me, rubbing my hands together nervously. While I knew he wouldn’t gossip to any others, I still feared his judgment; it would basically solidify the fear of my attraction for Amelia as being unnatural. Swallowing the lump in my throat, I finally began. “As I’m sure you know, we—well, I, took a human prisoner after the last successful attack the human’s had on the village…” The old man just gave a nod. “Well, she has been staying in my hut so that I could watch after her. And everyone wants to know why I haven’t killed her and why I took her in the first place when I just simply don’t know.”
“So you are seeking counsel as to why you captured a prisoner?” Kowlow asked.
“No, well, not exactly…” I stammered, groaning as I tried to compose my thoughts. While everything had felt so right the night Amelia and I had sex, everything felt so wrong then when trying to admit it to another. “I know why I kept her, but I don’t understand the cause which caused me to keep her.”
The shaman looked at me with a blank face and confused eyes for several long moments. “You aren’t making much sense, Dracon… You’re overthinking your words. Just tell me, it’ll be much simpler.”
“Fine.” Taking a deep breath and looking to the ground, I finally unleashed what was on my mind, “I took the human, Amelia, because when her face was revealed, I found myself attracted to her. Attracted to a human… I couldn’t believe it and I needed to know what was going on. So I had her chained to a chair in my hut, but as the next couple of days progressed, I felt myself growing attached and fond of the human. She had a spirit about her, and she is gorgeous for a human. And she seemed to be truly sorry for being a member of an attack squad, which really shocked me—you know how the humans have been, relentless and hell-bent on spilling blood. Then she helped us make that glorious victory against the humans. If it hadn’t been for her, we would have all died. We got back to the hut after the celebration and she admitted she cared for me and I… I lost it. I had sex with her. With a human. And when I awoke this morning, all I could think about was her and how I wanted to make her mine. I just don’t understand any of it. How can it be that I’m so attracted to a human? Is it wrong of me? Is it completely insane for me to have the urge to claim her? I just met this human and I want to claim her. I feel like I’m going mad.”
