CHAPTER FOUR

His back against the wall of the Room of Healing, Davin gobbled down the last remnants of his meal. He’d been a little hesitant, this being the first time he’d ever eaten non-synthesized, non-Terran food in his life. He was pleasantly surprised by the taste of what Sershi had called “kova steak”; its rich, hearty flavor danced on his tongue as he chewed, and he could actually feel the strength returning to his limbs.

No wonder the Ixtrayu are so strong if this is what they eat. Could use a little barbecue sauce, though. Maybe some black pepper.

He pushed his plate to the side and scanned the room. Set into the wall of the plateau, this spacious room was set up much like a hospital ward on Earth. Six piles of animal pelts were set up along the floor, three on one side, three on the other. There were no windows; the only light came from an array of candles placed inside lanterns that hung from the ceiling, as well as whatever natural sunlight filtered through the room’s only door. He had to hand it to the Ixtrayu; the place was pretty clean. And relaxing.

His hands fell to his waist, where they contacted a series of metallic tubes strung together around his body like a belt. He flipped a switch on one of them and got no response from it. He’d used their four remaining personal transporters in tandem to make the instantaneous jump from the Talon’s campsite in the mountains to the Ixtrayu village instantly. The longest of long shots, but he’d had to take the risk.

And it had paid off. His mother was alive.

The PTs, on the other hand? Dead as dinosaurs. With another Stone not far away, it was a God’s-honest miracle that they had made it there at all. Whatever energy signature the Stones put out seemed to seriously fark with Jegg technology—of which the PTs were a part—even though the transporters had been assembled by human hands.

He unclipped the PTs and set them on the floor next to the empty plate, his eyes falling on the two sleeping forms in the room. A few yards away, his mother dozed peacefully. Sershi’s twice-daily healing treatments since they had purged his mother’s body of the hugar’s venom had succeeded in restoring her mobility to the point where she could feed herself. However, she was still unsteady on her feet, and couldn’t walk more than a few short steps without toppling over. As no one in the tribe’s history had ever survived a hugar bite before, they had no prognosis for her recovery.

He rose to his feet, stretched, and walked across the room to catch a glimpse of the other sleeper, stopping halfway there. The girl, who he knew to be Kelia’s daughter Nyla, also slept peacefully, her dark hair spilling over her face. From his and his mother’s conversations with Kelia in the mountains, he knew she was only a year or so younger than he, and had already developed Wielding abilities similar to Kelia.

What that must be like. To be a teenager and have that kind of power.

He stared at Nyla’s face, what he could see of it, and imagined piercing brown eyes behind her closed eyelids. He couldn’t gauge her height, covered as she was by the pelts, but envisioned her side-by-side with Kelia, to whom she bore a striking resemblance.

“Um ... hello?” came a young, soft voice from the entrance.

A teenage girl stood there, staring at him, her head tilted to one side. She looked to be about the same age as Nyla. She was quite tall, with very tan skin, dark brown eyes, and long, wavy, chocolate-brown hair that came well past her shoulders. She was dressed in a tight leather tunic that showed off long legs and well-defined arm muscles.

And if that wasn’t enough, she was gorgeous. Before the invasion, a girl with that face would have every boy in whatever school she attended following her, their jaws hanging open.

They stood, unmoving, staring, sizing each other up.

“Uh, hi,” he finally said, giving her a friendly wave.

Davin was suddenly struck by the irony of the situation. He’d always considered himself to be confident; as a kid back on Earth, he’d had tons of friends, both boys and girls. He was the kind of person who could talk to, and get along with, anybody. Of course, when the Jegg invaded, he immediately went into hiding with his parents and the rest of the team. He’d been ten years of age when that happened. By the time he’d grown old enough to ... appreciate girls, he was living in a hidden base far beneath the sands of the Sahara Desert. The only three females he knew, and would ever see over the next five years, were Suri Patel (who was married), Kacy Weatherby (who was nice and actually quite pretty despite being covered in grease most of the time, but seemed to find his early attempts at masculinity more amusing than impressive), and his mother.

This girl was the first teenager he’d met since becoming one himself. A native girl from a planet on the opposite end of the galaxy.

Time to make a good first impression.

And ... nothing.

Then it hit him: this girl, if Kelia’s story about the Sojourns was true, had never left her village. Which meant he was the first boy she had ever seen. Ever.

And ... still nothing.

Stupid brain.

“May I come in?” she asked, as if permission to enter a room in her village was his to give. At least she was polite.

“Um, sure,” he said, beckoning her in.

She took several steps forward, her eyes flicking between him and Nyla’s sleeping form.

“I’m Davin,” he said, wondering if she already knew.

“I am Sarja,” she replied.

Fighting down his rising nerves, he extended his hand to her. She stared at it for a few moments, then moved her eyes back to his face. “Oh, um, sorry,” he said. “On my world, we greet each other by shaking hands.”

She nodded, then reached out her hand. He took it awkwardly, shook it gently, and smiled. “It’s nice to meet you, Sarja,” he said.

“It is agreeable to meet you as well, Davin.” She smiled, and he saw her shoulder muscles loosen.

“I didn’t think anyone was allowed to just come in here,” he said. “Except for Kelia and the Council. And Runa.”

Her eyes widened. “You’ve talked to my mother?”

“Runa’s your ...” He stared at Sarja, and instantly saw the resemblance. Runa had been the one to carry Maeve’s body to the cave where the Ixtrayu Stone lay, as he’d lacked the strength to do it himself. “Well, we haven’t ‘talked’ so much. She was there when we arrived.” He smiled. “She might just be the strongest lady I’ve ever met. And the tallest.”

She tilted her head at him again. “They don’t have tall people in The Above?”

“Oh, yes,” he said. “I even heard of one world where the inhabitants grow to fifteen feet high, but I have no idea if it’s true or not.”

“That’s ... interesting,” she said.

As if she’d run out of words, she turned away and sat down on the ground next to Nyla, clasping the comatose girl’s hand.

He cast a glance at his mother, who hadn’t moved, before sitting down against the wall next to Nyla’s bed. “Do you mind if I sit here?”

“I don’t mind,” she said, not looking up. “Have you been in here since your mother was healed?”

“Pretty much. Kelia said it would be best that I stay in this room for now.” He shot another glance at his mother. “It’s not like I would leave even if I could. Not until my mom has recovered.”

Sarja looked over her shoulder. “How’s she doing?”

“She’s getting better. The healers think she’ll be able to walk out of here in a day or two.”

She smiled. “That is good. Many of my sisters can’t wait to meet her.”

“I’m sure.”

“I was in this room when you ... um ... arrived. I’ve been coming here every moment I can since,” she nodded her head at Nyla, “this happened.”

“What happened to her?”

She sighed and met his gaze. “When the Protectress came back from the mountains, things were out of control. Councilor Susarra had sent Vaxi on Sojourn behind Kelia’s back, and the entire tribe was angry because no daughter has been born here since Nyla.”

He nodded. He’d heard a similar story from Kelia. He had no idea who Vaxi was.

“Ny’s been practicing her Wielding so hard lately,” Sarja continued. “She just wanted to help. She thought by touching the Stone, Arantha might reveal things to her that she wasn’t revealing to the Protectress. But this is what happened.” He heard a choked sob beneath her words.

His eyes narrowed as Sarja turned back to Nyla, moving several strands of hair away from the girl’s face. “I’m sorry,” he said.

“Why?” she asked, again not looking up.

The question threw him off guard. He was about to respond when he realized that though she looked human, she technically wasn’t. He had yet to hear of anything that humans and Elystrans didn’t have in common, emotionally anyway, but he was the alien in this scenario.

“I just am,” he said. “It sucks when bad things happen to good people.”

She nodded.

He remembered the moment he and his mother discovered they could understand the native language thanks to the telepathic-link-thingy that Kelia had formed with Maeve and, to a lesser extent, with him. He briefly wondered if the word “sucks” had an Elystran translation, but since she didn’t return his statement with a quizzical look, he figured it must.

“So, are you two best friends or something?”

“Our whole lives,” she said with a gentle smile. “She became my Promised only two days ago.”

“Your what?”

“My Promised. It’s a tradition we created. It means that we promise to choose each other as companions someday.”

His eyebrows went up. “Companions? You mean, like ... partners?”

“Yes.”

“As in, ‘in love’ partners?”

“Yes.”

Davin exhaled, and his mind flashed back to a few days ago when he and his mother had exited the ship only to find a naked Kelia bathing herself in the mountain lake next to where they had landed. Rather than cry out or cover herself up, she’d just stood there, letting them ogle her.

Wow, the women in this tribe aren’t exactly shy, are they?

What a great start I’m off to.

Realizing he was staring, he quickly moved his eyes to his shoes. “I’m sure she’ll be okay.”

“If Arantha wills it.”

“May I ask you a question?” Davin asked, leaning forward.

“Go ahead.”

“What are people saying out there? I mean, have things settled down at all?”

An almost comical look crossed her face. “Beings from the Above are visiting our village. One of them is male.”

He smirked. “I’ll take that as a ‘no’. Do you have any idea what’s going to happen to us?”

“I do not,” she said, lovingly laying Nyla’s hand across her stomach before standing. Davin stood as well. “But Kelia has informed us that you are our friends, and we are to treat you as such.”

“Good to know.”

Runa’s imposing frame appeared in the doorway, blocking out most of the external light. “Duma? It’s time for your tracking lesson.” Her eyes met Davin’s, and she smiled. “Good morning, Davin.”

“Hey,” he said, staring up at her. Damn, she’s tall. Wonder if I’ll ever get used to that.

“Coming, mama.” Turning to Davin, she added, “I’ll be back later. Maybe we can talk again?”

She smiled, and Davin’s heart raced at the sight.

Calm down, Davin. This girl is off the market.

“I’d like that. It’s been a long time since ... since I’ve had someone my age to talk to.” He caught Runa’s frown and wondered if he’d just screwed up royally. “Um, with your mother’s permission, of course.”

Runa gestured in the other direction, and Sarja walked past her. “I will think about it.”

She turned to leave, but Davin halted her. “Oh, one more thing?”

“Yes?” Runa said, clearly impatient to get on with her day.

“Is there any chance I could leave this room long enough for a bath or something? I’m pretty sure I smell worse than a chava.” He gave his most disarming grin.

Finally, her face loosened, and a slight smile appeared. “I’ll see if I can arrange a few minutes for you to be escorted to the cistern. It probably won’t be for a while.” Then she left.

Through the doorway, he watched her depart. In the next room, Sershi did the same, then gave him a polite nod. “Do you need anything else?” the healer asked.

He shook his head and resumed his seat next to his mother.

He was surprised to realize his heart was still racing.

Said heart nearly stopped when an unexpected “Dav?” jolted him out of his hormone-fueled daze.

“Mom!” he cried. Her eyes were open, and staring intently at him. He wondered if she’d heard any—or all—of his conversation with Sarja. “How are you feeling?”

“Much better, thanks,” she said, holding out a hand for him to grasp before hauling her into a sitting position. “How are you doing?”

He grinned. “Well, as the only boy in a five-hundred-mile radius, I guess I can’t complain. Our hosts have been nice enough, though I can’t say much for the view.” He gestured to the windowless room they now occupied. “You need some water? Food?”

“No, kiddo, what I need to do is talk to Kelia and the Council. I’ve had my rest, and what I have to say can’t wait any longer.”

He leaned back slightly, furrowing his brow. “Is this that horribly important thing you mentioned right after they revived you?”

“Yeah.”

“The same thing that made you wig out and run screaming out of the ship? Before you got bit by that snake?”

Her violet eyes became hooded, and she stared at her lap. “Yeah, Dav, it is.”

“It’s that bad?” he asked, his breath hitching.

She nodded ominously. “There isn’t a level of ‘bad’ in the English language to describe just how farking bad this is.”

He gulped. “Shite.”

She reached out with both hands this time. “Come on, kiddo, help me up.”