by L K Hingey
“What is it?” he asked in amazement.
“It’s called bioluminescent lichen. It’s a special organism that contains tiny compounds called luciferins. Essentially, it allows enzymes and oxygen to mix... which emits light. This specific lichen has a naturally occurring deficit of one molecule of oxygen, and the water acts as the activator.”
Kimber was trying to avoid giving a science lesson but knew Caleb was curious enough to want to understand. She paused for a second before going on, as if saddened by her own knowledge. “I guess there used to be hundreds of species on the planet that could do this. Now we have two.”
“Two?” Caleb asked as he placed the fading lichen into the water.
“Yeah. This lichen and the fire-flies in the insect habitats.”
“Ohhh.” Caleb smiled at the connection between the two strange species. “But how did the moss get here? How has it survived all this time? And how in Inanna did you find this in a book?” Caleb had so many questions, and Kimber didn’t blame him. The whole thing was too bizarre, too beautiful, and too secret to be true.
“You know how Auroras get assigned to workplaces just like humans do? Only, our rotations are way shorter because we have physical training?”
Caleb nodded. He was keenly aware of this and had been hoping every day for Kimber to be assigned to the greenhouses, even if only for a couple of weeks.
“Well, about a year ago, I was assigned to the science and technologies trade. I was an intern, like we all are, and I couldn’t stop asking questions of the biologists. One of the scientists, just to shut me up I think, lent me a textbook.” Kimber smiled at the memory. “Obviously, I read it right away.”
“Obviously,” Caleb mimicked teasingly.
Kimber looked at him sideways, rolled her eyes, and went on. “It was amazing. It went so much more into detail than our classes did in school. Well, at least than my classes in school did,” Kimber conceded, clearly bitter that the humans got to go to school for six more years than the Auroreans did.
Caleb let her go on without interrupting. “Hand-written in one of the pages of the book, in a chapter called ‘Luminosity’ was a description of the lichen. But not just of the lichen. It was more like a recipe... and an extra ingredient was tardigrade DNA!” Caleb’s eyebrows raised, but he still said nothing. “Moss by nature is hardy, but they needed to make the lichen even more resilient. Much more resilient.”
“Apparently it worked,” Caleb finally said.
Kimber nodded. “They had been growing the moss in the greenhouses for years until they achieved the right grafting.” Kimber winced a little at her last word but didn’t stop. “Then they moved a little of it down here to see if it would grow...” She allowed Caleb to finish her thought.
“Ah. And that’s when they moved all of it down here, telling us it was useless.”
Caleb could tell by her body language that there was even more. “There was a note scribbled on the bottom of the page. It read scheme of re-introduction with sub-notations prescribing the reader to follow on elsewhere. There were no additional pages, so the author must have continued in a journal or something, but the sub-notations were labeled: see Palaemonias ganteri, see Dasypodidae, see Passeridae, and see Lumbricina.”
Caleb grinned. “I may have gone to school a little longer Kimber, but what you just said sounds like gibberish.” His eyes twinkled, encouraging her to go on.
“Cave shrimp, armadillo, the common sparrow, and earth worms!” she blurted out excitedly. “I think the council has been grafting them, and maybe all of the animals, this whole time! Or, at least since we have been bringing them back specifically requested equipment from the surface!”
“Huh,” Caleb murmured. “I mean, if it works as well as the lichen, why keep it so quiet?”
“That’s the part I can’t figure out,” Kimber replied as she got up to stretch.
“Did you ever give the book back?”
“Nope.” Kimber flashed a smile. “I told them that I needed extra time with it, you know… because I didn’t go to school as long as you!” She gave him an exaggerated wink and pushed him playfully.
She tried to leap out of range, but his reflexes were surprisingly fast, and he caught her by the wrist. He was firm yet gentle as he pulled her towards him. In a fluid motion, he grabbed both her hands and simultaneously pushed her away from his body towards the pool. His grip was tight, and he smiled as he leaned her over the water.
“Not as quick as you think you are,” Caleb teased.
“Obviously not. But I am as wise as I think I am. Enough to trust that you won’t drop me,” Kimber retorted. The heat from colliding with his body lingered on her skin. What she wanted more than anything in the world was for him to pull her into his arms. His smile was so genuine and happy.
“Okay, you’ve got me there. I would never drop you.”
“I know,” Kimber replied.
At once, she let go of his hands and twisted into a dive. The Auroras liked the water. The humans would have liked the water too, if it weren’t fifty-five degrees. The humans would start becoming hypothermic immediately, and in water at that temperature, they could die in as little as two to five hours. All Caleb could do was to watch her. And truthfully, that was all he wanted to do.
Her body shimmered orange and red, her scales shining in the effervescent neon water. She looked so graceful as she paddled and dove around. She twisted and swirled putting on a show of color for Caleb. He climbed onto a nearby ledge and watched, memorized. He was certain he was the only man alive who knew exactly what a mermaid looked like.
Kimber started to wrap up her pool party by taking a series of longer and deeper dives. Caleb wondered what she could be doing and thought maybe she was collecting more moss. He did not have to wait long to find out because she popped back up with a huge sputter for air. Her hands were tightly clasped in front of her, and she was swimming awkwardly towards the edge, using only her legs to propel her. Caleb leapt down and grabbed her elbow to help her get to the rock.
Kimber propped her elbows up on the ledge and smiled breathlessly at him. “Thanks!”
Caleb’s heart was pounding. “Anytime. You are a little crazy... you do know that, right?”
“Our entire lives are crazy,” she whispered earnestly, looking up at him. “I have one more thing for you.” Beaming, she opened her cupped hands.
Caleb was kneeling so close that Kimber felt a little dizzy. She was in no danger, but her body temperature had significantly dropped, making her even more aware of his nearly one hundred degrees of warmth. Auroras were not quite warm-blooded and were not quite cold-blooded. They had been designed at the intersection of the two species to make them hyper-adaptable to extreme environments. Even their reproductive systems had been carefully orchestrated. The African Bush Viper had been selected as the genetic pairing for many reasons, not least of which was the fact that the female snakes gave live birth.
When Caleb looked down, he could barely believe his eyes. He probably should have seen it coming but was so enraptured by simply being with Kimber, he was behind the curve ball. There in her hands swam a white crustacean. It was about the length of her palm and was nearly transparent. Its meaty chest cavity was yellow, and it had whiskers half its body length.
“This place is incredible,” Caleb said with admiration. He thought for a second and added, “You are incredible.”
Kimber’s face was on fire. She motioned to place the shrimp into Caleb’s hands. He cupped his hands and she opened hers allowing the small creature to fall through. As he held the cave shrimp up to see it better in the lamplight, Kimber hauled herself out of the water.
“Are there many of these down here?” he asked.
“More and more each time I visit. They must depend on the lichen for food and shelter. And the lichen is thriving.”
Caleb gently took the shrimp between two fingers and held it up. Its tiny, soft legs and translucent tail went rigid in a mute panic. It w
as beautiful in a peculiar and eerie way. All that moved were the little whiskers that frantically probed the air.
“Absolutely incredible,” Caleb said again, shaking his head. He took a knee and placed the shrimp into the water, letting it get its bearings before setting it free.
“I wish everyone could see this. But maybe the council fears if two hundred people came snooping around it, would destroy the fragile ecosystem.” Kimber’s gaze traveled up and around the chamber. The colors and the music of the chimes danced in unity in the dome of the ceiling. “The council must have felt like this place was created just for this purpose. The shrimp can’t get up the waterfall, and someone strung up an underwater net downstream to make sure they don’t swim too far from their food and family.”
“I can’t believe that I get to see this. It’s like a dream,” Caleb told her quietly. “Maybe I am dreaming,” he added cocking his head with a grin. “And if I am, then maybe I can just stay down here forever with you.” Kimber was still not used to his flirting and continued to blush. She was not good at addressing compliments head on and normally would just riposte with something sassy, but not right now. She did not want to spoil this moment.
Instead, she simply reached out for his hand. She smiled, allowing the sounds, the feeling of the wind, and Caleb’s warmth to wash over her. With her hand in his, she closed her eyes, letting a memory float back to her of when she was little and napping in her mother’s silky arms. There was nothing as soft and safe in the entire world. She felt that same warmth and safety now, despite the beads of freezing water dripping off her. They stood there for a few minutes, hand in hand, soaking in the beauty all around them.
Caleb watched Kimber out of the corner of his eye. He smiled when her eyes shut, and he did his best not to move a muscle. He did not want to disturb her. He stood, barely breathing, trying to commit everything to memory. Her little hand was so cold and smooth, so different from his large, rough, warm hand. His heart swelled and ached; he knew he would do anything to protect her, and he also knew there was no way on Earth that he could.
When Kimber opened her eyes, she smiled at Caleb. Gently tugging him, she walked them over to the waterfall. “Watch this,” she said as she positioned him out of splash range. She walked halfway into the waterfall and deflected the water in a spray onto the lichen behind the fall. The lichen came to life in a dazzle of neon, and she laughed as she pulled Caleb behind the waterfall to see it.
“What do you think?” Kimber asked in excitement, her back to him as they gazed up at the glowing wall.
“I think it’s the fifth most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.” He was looking up in awe. Kimber sensed the shift, an immediate energizing of the air, as she heard- or maybe sensed- his arm moving. Caleb reached up with his right hand and touched her shoulder. His fingertips were like lightning bolts.
The contact was so incredibly gentle that Kimber couldn’t believe the explosions it created on her skin. Immediately her eyes shut, and she reached out a hand to brace herself on the wall. Caleb froze.
“You don’t have to stop,” Kimber whispered, barely audible. She could read his body language like a book and could literally feel his energy. When she reached out for the wall, she knew he was scared he had hurt her.
Caleb listened, but proceeded with even lighter fingertips. His body was only a foot or so away from hers as they stood in the narrow space under the waterfall. The air was warm, charged, and focused. Caleb had spent tons of time with the Auroras, most of all with Kimber, but had never actually been so close to one. He had always admired her scaled skin, the way it shone and glistened like armor… the way she moved with cat-like speed and grace… the way the Auroras were strong and impenetrable to the elements, but as much in need of tenderness as the humans.
Caleb’s fingertips moved slowly and surely over her shoulder, appreciating every curve and every scale. He moved her hair to the side with his left hand, leaving his hand on her left shoulder while continuing to caress her with his other hand. His fingers traveled up the side of her neck to her ear. Softly, he traced her ear and let the back of his hand run down her cheek, before his fingertips took over, falling from her chin down to her neck.
“Are you sure I’m not bothering you?” Caleb asked seriously. Kimber could not speak. She could barely breath. She managed to shake her head, then nodded vigorously realizing she gave him the wrong answer.
“I’m sure,” she managed, almost painfully. “Your touch is just... so warm.”
Caleb nodded solemnly and kept his touch feather light.
His fingers moved to her back as he grazed the outlines of where her brown leather vest rested on her shoulder blades. There was so much muscular definition. His hand stayed above her mid back, respectfully exploring the subtle curves he had seen hundreds of times. Eventually his hand came to rest on the top of her outstretched arm. If it were even possible for him to get even gentler still, he did, as he leaned down and placed a kiss where Kimber’s neck met her shoulder.
Kimber had been in an absolute trance the entire time Caleb touched her. Her senses were completely derailed, and her body was paralyzed. The sounds, the sights, and the many thoughts of her world were erased, and all that existed was this. She had never felt more vulnerable in her life and she was relishing every second. When Caleb finally kissed her neck, she felt like she was on the brink of collapsing and forced her eyes to open to help herself re-ground.
Caleb’s hands had been so steady and so warm that it had felt like lava was dripping slowly into her skin as his fingertips danced around. But his kiss was different. The air had had such a magnetic pull that when his lips reached her skin, it was like puzzle pieces snapping into place. Puzzle pieces the size of the stars and planets that had dominated their lives.
The impact was so soft that it was devastating, and it was so warm that Kimber instantly got chills. She had opened her eyes to try to dull her sense of touch, but it did not help. Her eyes were dilated, and her brain was so overloaded that her hand in front of her was just a blur, albeit a sensational blur of light and color. Opening her eyes did help her senses of smell and hearing come back, but they only served to elevate her higher on cloud nine.
Kimber inhaled Caleb’s scent. It was an intoxicating fragrance of his skin, sweat, and adrenaline. The adrenaline reminded her she was not the only one whose body was in overdrive. She forced herself to focus on the sounds. The waterfall and the wind chime seemed so distant, pushed out of her psyche by Caleb’s pounding heart. Her own heart was going wild and for the second time that day, she was grateful that he could not read her as easily as she could read him.
Caleb had been so focused on her colors and curves he had not noticed that the lichen had started to go dark. He let his lips linger briefly on her skin, feeling so much more than he could with his fingers, before lifting his kiss. As he did, he opened his eyes and could see one last patch of bright neon outlining her wet hand pressed against the wall. It was so beautiful. He rested his cheek against Kimber’s head and watched the outline as it dimmed.
He could sense that her eyes had opened, and so he reached around behind him to touch the cold water. He brought his right arm over Kimber’s and placed his hand on top of her hand, reigniting the neon. His hands were quite a bit larger, and his long fingers extended over hers. Kimber smiled. Caleb had kept the gap between his body and hers. He could have easily leaned in, but ever the gentleman, he did not.
Caleb was trying to help Kimber refocus. He knew that his own mind and body were on a considerable high and couldn’t even imagine what she was feeling. The Auroras had heightened senses, and he had heard rumors they could even feel in a sixth sense. It was also a well-known fact that although the Auroras did not really need heat, they cherished concentrated amounts of it. He figured, and fiercely hoped, that this was her fist experience being this close to a human’s warmth.
Kimber turned her head to the side, touching her cheek to his chin. “Will you sit with me f
or a minute? Then we can have our picnic?” She nodded towards her leather bag which she had taken off earlier and deposited only a small reach away from the falls.
“We can sit as long as you’d like,” he whispered back, pulling his hand off of hers. He immediately sat down to the side of the waterfall where there was more moss and reclined comfortably. The last thing he wanted to do was to awkwardly wait for her to sit, and then compound her stress by not knowing where to position himself.
To his surprise, Kimber twirled around and sat down in front of him, nuzzling backwards between his bent knees. She moved without hesitation until just before leaning against his chest. There she paused for a split-second as if either bracing herself or asking for permission. Either way, Caleb placed a single finger on her backwards extended hand to let her know it was okay. She exhaled quietly and leaned into him.
She was trying to keep some of the cool that she had just regained but feeling so much of his skin against hers was like cuddling up to the sun itself. It was incredible, and though she feared it might possibly give her a heart attack, it was exactly what she had been craving. She bit down on her tongue, trying to stop herself from making any sound. She bit down so hard she could taste blood, and she silently prayed that he did not feel as though he were holding a feral animal.
Caleb gently took her hands and held them in front of their bodies, cradling her with his arms. He noticed how cool her skin was. Perhaps it was not exactly a coolness that he was feeling, but more so how hungrily her body was sapping his body heat. He did not mind it at all, as the cavern was extremely warm with all the extra fire bowls. The sensation was still very strange though.
He held her until her breathing calmed. This was the first time he had ever felt like the strong one between them. Over the years he had become so frustrated that he could not keep up with the Auroras physically, he had almost let Kimber drift away entirely. Not only would he never go to the surface with Auroras, but he could not keep up in a fight or even in a simple foot race. Hell, he thought, I can’t even swim with them. He may have been strong in the race of humans, but he was fragile and weak compared to the Auroras.