by C. R Corbin
"Thanks. I needed that. That thing was getting pretty annoying." she coughed out while her eyes shut for just a moment. It seems that she was even having trouble speaking due to her exhausted state.
I appraised every inch of her. Those curves that shifted underneath that blanket of her's were absolutely enthralling. I wanted nothing more than to simply grab her and make her mine right here and now. I knew that the feeling was mutual but even more so than that...I wanted her to actually want me completely. She was unwilling at times, she had referred to me as "alien prick" at other times but one thing was constant with her. There was always this hint of resignation and anger in her eyes when I tried to claim her and now was no different.
I wanted to earn that happiness that flickered in her eyes whenever we played those games or whenever I had taken her to see the stars on the observation deck. She was still conflicted over her friend, her fate, all of it was weighing down on her and I could see it as clear as day.
But why?
Why had she fought so hard to earn her place? Why had she fought so hard to attempt to surmount something that seemed inevitable? It merely seems foolish to me for her to try and fight me off while I was set on claiming her as mine, it made no sense to me but perhaps there was something that I hadn't seen and valued. I could see it in those warm brown eyes of her's and those soft golden locks that whipped over her cheeks.
I could see it there, that sense of joy that I wanted so dearly, that innocence and that warmth that was festering in my heart, something that I had wanted to protect.
Was this happiness? Was this sadness? What was it? It couldn't be love could it?
Could it?
I had never pondered the idea of even getting a bit attached to her. I had seen her as something to be used for breeding and nothing more. She was pleasurable and absolutely infectious in her lust and I thought that she thought the same about me. Mating bonds back home usually did result in attachment but there was nothing that mentioned love. That was a word that was only reserved for the strongest mating bonds, a word that crowned a relationship as being far more intense than anything else. Was that what I had at the moment?
I didn't have any more time to ponder the question before I laid down and rested my head on the pillow beside her. My torso brushes her and I wrapped my arms around her still body to bring her closer as darkness took me.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Kelly
It was the day, today was the day that the crash was going to happen. We were just passing the planet that had been deemed as livable by Xu and he was going to free us. We had received word that some reinforcements were coming and that we were likely going to be free of this entire situation soon enough. Funnily, I wasn't as happy as I thought I would be.
Don't get me wrong I was still ecstatic that we were going to make it out of this mess and not end up being servants or something, but some part of me had just begun liking spending time with Rel. Deep down I knew that he was a good man and that there was potential for some level of change and yet I hadn't taken the time to truly understand it. This feeling of warmth would overtake me when I was with him, during all of those times that he had been watching me the warmth had only grown more and more intense.
I knew what it was, I wasn't some fool emotionally. I was falling for him, falling in love, I understood it the moment I felt a tingling in my stomach when I woke up and saw him leaning against the wall while staring at me.
He was handsome, far more handsome than any man that I had ever seen, he was relatable at times and could be vulnerable if he needed to be, every trait of his just connected with me and I knew that I could have him if I tried hard enough. I could see that same feeling of warmth that I was experiencing reciprocated in his own gaze at times. There was some part that gave me pause, however. Was I really going to fall for this guy? The same man that had been a party in taking over my ship and basically selling the entire ship away as slaves?
No, no this was not right. No matter how charming he became or how close we grew that would always be a hurdle for me...but that didn't mean that he couldn't change. I wanted him alive, I want him to live through this experience so I could show him a better path, so I could exploit that light that I knew festered in his heart.
"Where are we headed anyway? We have never been down this hallway before, why today?" he asked me with his eyes shut and his arms folded in front of him. I almost had to stifle a giggle at his current posture, he thought he looked so cool and nonchalant when in reality he looked completely silly to me.
"We are headed towards the lower deck to see the gardens, that's where. Don't tell me you've forgotten about this place. They are necessary for the two of us to still be alive on this damn ship after all." I told him as he snorted.
"Yeah, right, how could I forget?" He remarked with a small grin as we ran down the steps towards the greenhouse.
Jeremy was there and he gave me a short wave, I could tell from his expression that he knew what was coming up. Only several people knew about the plan that we had, the trustworthy ones anyways. He was busy spraying some of the plants when I walked in, I rest my hands on a flower as I passed by, stroking the white petals with my fingers as we strolled through the hull.
"Pretty isn't it?" I called back to Rel who only sniffled in response.
"Yes it is, and surprisingly strong in scent." he remarked as he coughed into his arm before gazing back at the petals "But I must admit, there is a lot of color here. The organisms on Rial don't really have this sort of variety. They're drabber." He remarked as he stroked the leaves, his eyes lighting up with this strange sense of admiration that was somewhat creepy coming from him.
"You feeling okay?" I asked him with a smile on my face and he nodded quickly before removing his hand from the plant as if it was on fire.
"Yes, yes i'm fine." he coughed and gazed at his feet, he looked so damn cute when he wasn't sure of himself which, admittedly, was rare.
"I know that look in your eye. You're slightly embarrassed, aren't you? Can't admit that you think they're pretty? What's the world come to when such a proud Rialan warrior can't show a bit of class and call these things stupid?" I questioned him and he chuckled whilst shaking his head. Funny, that little tease from me would have elicited ample protests and indignation about a couple of weeks ago, now all I got was a simple nod and a smile.
"You're rubbing off on me. That much I will admit. A man should listen to his mate at times I suppose." he remarked while we strolled through the green halls.
I had picked this spot to travel down mostly because it was the most heavily armored apart of the ship. Other than that, my falls could be cushioned by the plants here and the shock dampeners were stronger here more so than anywhere else. This would ensure that the two of us would live to see another day once this massive hunk of metal finally crashed. We were set to begin descent very shortly from what I understood, at 10am in fact.
The planet that we were to land on was rather dry so water would be a scarcity. Apparently, our reinforcements were to arise about a couple of days later so I would have to make do before then. The lower decks where the greenhouse was, also stored a great deal of water as a result of the plants needing it so that was another reason why I chose this place. There were some lakes on the planet but drinking from them was rather inadvisable without filtration straws or tablets as the germs would likely kill me in a matter of days. Before all of this I had made a special note to go to the medical office to get some immune boosters before we landed, there is only enough for myself since giving them to Rel would have aroused suspicion.
I fondled the syringes in my pocket, hoping that they would stay intact during the crash. There was little else I could do but wait here for the ship to crumble into the ground beneath us. It wasn't like I had much of a choice in the matter anyways. There was nowhere I could go to strap myself in because if I did then someone would instantly know that something was amiss and the plan would b
e ruined entirely. No I had to stay here, I had to make sure that the two of us survived but I also had to ensure that I would be free by the end of this all. I could already feel the ship fluttering slightly beneath my feet, the lights were flickering above me and I gave them a curious glance, unsurprisingly, Rel caught on as well.
"Looks like we have a bit of turbulence." he muttered while caressing the flower in his hand. I walked up alongside him and leaned in to get a waft of it before nodding to myself. "Yeah, looks like we do."
And slowly but surely the ship begins to shift more and more, I could feel the gravitational pull of the planet, suddenly the omnipresent roar of the boosters on the ship suddenly ceased and we were left with...nothingness.
"What is happening?" he called out in shock as the ship began to suddenly tilt, we were headed towards the planet.
I had to act the part.
"AHHH!" I screamed as I stumbled into the plants. I was covered in soil and moss by the time I managed to fish myself out of the sea of leaves but yet again I was sent for a tumble as the ship rocked once more and sent me flying against the wall.
"Are you alright?" he called out to me in shock as he desperately clawed his way towards me, I could hear Jeremy screaming in the back, the sirens began to sound not long after.
"There has been a malfunction in the engine. I repeat, damage has occurred in the engine. Everyone stay in pl-" began to voice but it soon cut off when a large explosion sounded. The entire ship rumbled and I collapsed while trying to get to my feet to grip onto a tree. I stayed in place and wrapped my hands around a small tree trunk while the ship began to shake wildly until I felt us descending.
"I will safeguard you." said Rel with the utmost sincerity in his voice as his armor activated and he hugged me from behind. He holds me in place and I shut my eyes, praying that we would both make it out of this hair-brained scheme alive.
I look back at that red visor that was glancing at me and shivered. He reached upwards and stroked my cheek, I flinched as he did so. The guilt suddenly flowed into my bloodstream and I couldn't help but lament the fact that I was in the know about this. I could tell from his gestures and the look in his eyes in that brief moment that the ship began to fall that he understood that I was afraid and that he needed to protect me.
Perhaps he did love me and perhaps I felt the same but that was in the past now. All that mattered was emancipating myself from the tyranny of Gerax and his men, to release Penny from this life of servitude that would await her.
I grimaced as I begin to feel the plants shiver around me. We were entering the atmosphere and that could only mean that the wind was beginning to strike the hull of the ship and cause severe turbulence. I shut my eyes and grit my teeth as I rested my face in the soil, waiting for the inevitable until it happened.
Just like that my vision was filled with white and I could feel my face smacking the dirt as a variety of things struck me. My grip on the tree released and I went tumbling across branches and soil before it suddenly stopped, a sudden rush of air consumed the ship and I could feel the wind cutting across my skin as I went into a daze and fell into unconsciousness.
I woke up sometime later, my brain felt so clouded, so dull, I had no idea where I was or where anybody was for that matter.
I stood up from the dirt and winced as I tried to support myself on my left arm, it was broken, I knew that much. As I tried to take in a breath it quickly became apparent that a rib or two was broken, when I tried to walk, I found out that my ankle had sustained serious injuries. Whether it was twisted or broken I didn't know but it really hurt.
I support myself on one of the beams running along the side of the garden. I looked around to see that Rel was still on the floor, his helmet was cracked in the back and his hands were grasping in my general direction. It looked like his armor was severely damaged, the man must have been protecting me during the fall.
I had to find a medical kit, anything!
I walked along the wall and saw various other soldiers that were in various states of confusion. None of them had the foresight to grab anything and there weren't that many so I wasn't entirely worried about their presence. I grabbed a medical kit that was hanging from the wall which I walked along and set it down in front of Rel once I got back. I took out all the tools, the med gel, the binding spray, the numbing pack, the mending injections, everything that I would be needing.
I injected several of the binding fluids into the spots were my bones had either been strained or broken. I quickly felt the pain begin to fade although it still lingered and I know that I would have to be careful on those limbs so I wouldn't re-break them. I grabbed the med gel and began to slather my cuts and bruises, sighing as I felt the wounds fizzling before shutting slightly. It would speed the healing process up but it wouldn't entirely take care of me until a day later.
I took a look at Rel and heard him murmur in his state of unconsciousness. His hands were twitching and the back of his head was bleeding, his helmet had taken a serious pounding against the metal railing of the ship, that was for sure. I crawled over to him and grabbed the helmet before tugging it off with all of my might. He sighed and trembled as I gazed at the gash across the back of his head before I slathered the med gel onto it. The wound began to fizzle and crack back into place while I appraised the rest of his wounds. There looked to be a piece of shrapnel stuck in his side, his left arm looked like it had been severely damaged as well.
I tried as hard as I could to remove his armor but it wasn't budging. The metal plates stayed in place and I sighed after straining with all of my effort. It looked like I wouldn't be able to free him from the vice-like grip of this, yet I knew that I had to do something. Just as I was about to lose hope it seems as if my prayers were answered when he suddenly spoke up.
"Re-rebelke." he ordered as his suit shifted and the plates began to fall off of his body. It all collected in this bundle of metal on his arm that I tore off rather quickly. His wounds were severe but not as bad as mine. There was a cracked skull which was pretty serious but he also had a pretty bad fracture on his right arm and left leg, there were a variety of gashes and wounds elsewhere on his body from the shrapnel so those would also need attention.
I did what I could and injected him with whatever amount of the mending fluid that I had. His cuts and scrapes, as well as the large hole in his thigh from the piece of shrapnel stuck in there, was mended by the med gel. There was a massive chunk of metal sticking out of his back that I understood was more suited for actual medical care than whatever was in this kit so I left it.
"Rel, Rel are you alright?" I asked him as I stroked his bare face. His cheeks puffed up and his eyes fluttered as those shining tones of crimson dripped onto me. I remembered the immune boosters in my pocket and felt around for them. Luckily enough they were still mostly intact.
I gave him a quick shot of it and gave myself one as well, he glanced at me questioningly at the presence of the boosters in my pocket before resigning himself to his own exhaustion. I could just say they came from the medical kit, he would have no idea where they actually came from.
I sit there on the soil and pant as I glanced upwards. My hand rested on Rel while he groaned in pain. Our bodies were a mess, I could only imagine what would have happened to anyone that wasn't in a more secure area of the ship. The room was still intact for the most part although there was a large chunk of ceiling that was missing in the corner. I suppose the crash really did a number on the ship. The air from outside was cold and leaking in, my breath hitched as I took in a waft of it and I coughed as a result. I stared at the glaring red sunlight as it beat down on the cracked steel of the ship, my hands grabbed the shadows of our former spacecraft as I watched the bunches of leaves from the plants in the room flutter onto the ground in a chaotic tangle. The scent of flowers and blood filled the air, my eyes had a hard time adjusting to the sudden rush of red light to be honest. My eyes were already squinted and the tears were alre
ady gathered in the corner of them from irritation.
Xu said the planet would be livable, not that it would be pleasant. I suppose I had to give him that.
I wait for a while until I grow tired of lying in the dirt and the cold before I get to my feet. I looked over at Rel who was still sprawled out amongst the dirt and decide to leave him for a moment while I wandered outside of the ship. I gripped onto the metal hull and carefully made my way for the metal doorway that was the entrance to the oxygen room, one of them anyways.
I gripped the hull and tear it open as the cold air began to peek through. This planet was freezing, I have to say that at least. The air seemed to bite at my cheeks every time it brushed on by and there were sand grains in every inch of the winds, it made breathing quite the chore. I strained to lurch forward on my bad leg that I knew was still healing, I had to take extra care to let it rest the necessary amount of time but I needed to see the extent of the damage.
And boy did I see it when I walked up the stairs.
I was about to crawl up the next flight when I noticed that the entire upper bit of this ship was missing, either that or it was somewhere else. I looked out of the massive gap that has formed due to that piece of the ship detaching and I see it sitting in the distance, it was a bit farther than I would have thought it would have landed and that half looked to be in much worse shape than the portion that I was in at the moment. The metal was cracked, shattered, various bodies were strewn amongst the sands and the patches of grass that this planet had. The way the red sun bore down on our ships made it looked like some sort of corpse that has been cracked open and was now bleeding all over the place, the corpse of a metallic giant that has been split into two.