“Well, there’s a first time for everything.” I glanced at Ghost and Poe. My conversation with Max had been on a subvocal level again, but somehow, the Buri always knew. Ghost was used to it and paid no attention. Poe continued to give me wary looks from the corners of his eyes.
I shot him my biggest grin. “Gentlemen, let’s drop off these samples and go party. But I’m warning you now, I don’t know how to waltz.”
CHAPTER 10
To my disappointment, the fun and games didn’t start that night. Instead, the Buri decided to torture me. Since I’d slept through breakfast, and only had a few cups of the red stuff for lunch, my stomach was eagerly looking forward to the evening feast. What I got was a bowl of weak broth and a tiny glass of something fruity. Neither my attempts at looking pitiful nor the loud rumbling of my stomach garnered me more victuals. My only consolation was that Thor and Junior were in the same predicament.
The three of us sat sequestered at one end of a table, guarded by Elder and Auntie Em, and watched the rest of the tribe nibble at an unusually light meal. But at least they got meat and bread, and my stomach growled ominously at the scent drifting from the other end of the table. Thank the Goddess I had my stash of supplies back at my quarters. I’d just wait until the village was asleep and then sneak a few snacks to hold me over.
Resigned to a few more hours of starvation, I glanced at Thor. He sat to my right, the heat from his big body warming my side. Junior was to Thor’s right, and Elder was next to Junior. Auntie Em sat to my left, watching every move I made, and I had the distinct impression she was waiting for me to commit a faux pas so she’d have an excuse to pounce. Only it turned out to be Thor who drew her wrath.
He’d finished off his broth in two swallows, and then occupied himself by chatting with Elder and Junior. But when I glanced at him, he turned to look down at me, and our gazes locked. A wave of dizziness washed over me, and the buzzing in my head increased to a roar. I was barely aware of Thor’s hand lifting, sliding under my braid to cup my nape. When my stomach clenched, it had nothing to do with hunger.
My lips were trying to issue an invitation to go for a stroll in the jungle when Auntie Em brought the proceedings to a crashing halt. She did it by the simple expedient of reaching around me and whacking Thor upside his head. Then she delivered a tirade that had Junior and Elder grinning, and Thor scowling. After that he avoided direct eye contact with me as though his life depended on it. And from the glares Auntie Em was giving him, maybe it did.
Damn.
Was I really as desperate to jump Thor as I felt? Oh, yeah. And for some odd reason, either lack of food or something in the juice we were drinking seemed to amplify our mental connection. I could feel his desire like a tangible thing, and it increased my own. Between us, out of Auntie Em’s sight, our hands touched and I broke out in a light sheen of sweat.
I was in the process of frantically devising plans that would get me alone with Thor at the soonest possible moment when Auntie Em stood and pulled me up with her. Thor hastily let go of my hand. The other Buri took her movement as a signal. All conversation stopped, and everyone rose to their feet. The females slowly gathered around me and Auntie Em while the males joined Thor, Junior and Elder.
All the males except Brownie. I hadn’t noticed his absence until he suddenly appeared in the doorway, a spear held menacingly in his hands, his bulk blocking the exit. The determination he’d felt this morning had doubled and was now flavored with desperation.
Around me the Buri froze into immobile statues, a feeling of dismay rising from the group as they stared intently at Brownie.
Slowly he straightened, his chin rising in a gesture of defiance. Before I had time to blink, he drew his arm back and let the spear fly. It landed in the floor at Thor’s feet, the deadly point buried in wood, the shaft quivering from the force of the throw. Sounding very formal, Brownie uttered a short phrase.
Thor answered in the same tone and added a regal nod to the mix. He hadn’t flinched or even blinked as the spear landed inches from his buckskin-clad toes. As soon as he finished speaking, Brownie turned and left the building, the other Buri rushing to follow, taking me along in their wake.
I had a horrible feeling that something violent was about to occur.
As soon as we reached the clearing in the center of the buildings, the Buri formed a loose circle with Thor and Brownie in the middle. Pushing my way to the front, I chewed my lip in worry, wishing I could do something to stop the battle that was coming, knowing I couldn’t. The tension between Thor and Brownie had obviously been brewing for a while now. Even if I did interfere, it would only delay the inevitable. “Max, record,” I told the ship.
“Recording.”
The late-evening sun sent a shaft of brilliance to spark off the gold bracelets both males wore as silence descended, broken only by the inquisitive cheep of a dragon bird. But even that was cut off abruptly as they began to close the distance between them.
Unconsciously, my muscles tensed in sympathetic readiness, and my breath caught in my lungs.
With minimal warning, Brownie rushed Thor, jamming his shoulder into Thor’s chest and driving him back several steps before he caught his balance.
The clench continued for an agonizing second before Thor threw him off. Then, with blinding speed, he retaliated. In a blur of motion, Thor hit Brownie, lifted him from his feet and slammed him to the ground. Before Brownie could move, Thor was on top of him, pinning him to the clearing floor.
A grunt of approval came from beside me, and I cut my eyes sideways to see Poe watching the action, a feeling of vindication coming from him. For that matter, all of the Buri around me were feeling the same thing.
They wanted Thor to best Brownie once and for all.
The waves of emotion radiating from the group suddenly made me realize this wasn’t merely about Brownie objecting to Thor’s acceptance of my presence. This had been a long time coming, and it was more than just a personal quarrel. Brownie was challenging Thor for leadership of the Buri.
I turned back to the action, heart in my throat, just in time to see Brownie’s torso heave and toss Thor to the side. There was no doubt in my mind what would happen if Brownie won. I’d be banished from the tribe, which would result in failing to save the Buri from both Dynatec and their low birthrate.
As though sensing my turmoil, Poe reached over and patted my shoulder. His faith in Thor was absolute, and reinforced my own. Of course Thor would win, I thought, just as Brownie got him in a headlock and fell backward, taking Thor with him. And if by some quirk of fate Thor was badly hurt, I’d kill Brownie myself. I wasn’t done with the big guy yet and didn’t appreciate the idea that he might be put out of commission for the fun and games I was plotting.
Frowning, I watched the muscles bulge in Thor’s arms as he pried Brownie loose. They weren’t using fists, I realized, as the two males rolled on the ground. Squeaks erupted from the few females on the other side of the circle when their feet were almost swept from under them by the furiously rolling bodies.
The wrestling match seemed to go on forever, with first Thor on top, then Brownie, and my admiration for the Buri, especially Thor, increased with every passing minute. Their strength was awesome and their beauty without match. And their stamina was nothing to sneeze at, either. Natural human males would have collapsed in exhaustion by now.
Abruptly, Thor surged to his feet. Brownie rose in front of him and I could see the desperation in his eyes. He was losing the challenge and he knew it. He hadn’t come close to pinning Thor.
Not good. Desperation made you reckless, made you take stupid risks.
Accompanied by gasps from the horrified tribe, Brownie clenched his fist and swung at Thor’s jaw. But Thor wasn’t there. In a blur of speed that took me by surprise, Brownie was suddenly flat on the ground with Thor holding his shoulders down. The big guy murmured something, and Brownie nodded, his eyes closed in defeat.
While the tribe cheered, Thor
stood and held his hand out to Brownie, pulling him erect when the other Buri accepted the gesture. For a minute longer, Thor held on to him, talking to Brownie in a low intent voice. A feeling of resignation settled over him, and he finally acknowledged whatever Thor was telling him, but I knew he still didn’t like it. When they were finished, Thor thumped him on the shoulder in a friendly gesture and then turned to the others and gave a short command.
Every womanly instinct I had was screaming at me to go check Thor for injuries even through I could see he was fine, but the females immediately moved to surround me as the males clustered around Thor. With the division of the sexes once again established, my entourage exited the clearing, taking me with them as I cast longing glances over my shoulder at Thor. Not only was he sexy and gorgeous, he was honorable, and my traitorous heart went pitter-patter just looking at him.
But whatever was happening to me was happening to him, too. The much larger contingent of males escorted him from the clearing in a different direction from where the females were ushering me. Not until he was out of sight did I finally start paying attention to my surroundings and my still empty tummy.
In the last rays of the setting sun, the women led me north, into the jungle. More than a few of them carried bundles, and Auntie Em carried a sheaf of torches. Okay, looked like we were going someplace dark.
We walked for almost an hour, paralleling the cliff face. By the time we reached an opening in the solid wall, night was upon us.
“Max, mark this location. There’s a cave, and I might want to come back later.”
“Yes, Kiera.” He sounded distant, as though most of his attention was focused elsewhere.
“Something wrong?”
“A minor problem. One of my satellites on the far side of the planet is experiencing a technical glitch. I’m afraid a sensor is going out.”
“Can you fix it?” I watched Auntie Em light a torch from a small fire that burned near the opening of the cave and then distribute more torches to the others.
“I’m trying, but I’m not sure yet. The images it’s sending are flickering in and out. I may need to replace it.”
Max’s satellites were his eyes. If any of them went out, it left him with a blind spot, something that made us both very nervous.
“Okay. We’re going into the cave now. If we get very far from the entrance, you and I won’t be able to communicate, but I’ll give you a report when I get out.”
I wasn’t thrilled about taking a stroll through a cave when time was running out. There were only six weeks left to learn about the Buri culture and figure out why they weren’t reproducing, so this seemed like a waste of valuable time. On the other hand, you never know what small thing might be the turning point for completing the mission before the two months were up, so I’d go along with the side trip.
Before I could follow Auntie Em inside, Lurran shoved a torch in my hand and gestured to the fire. “If I’d known we were going spelunking, I would have brought my prism torch,” I told her. “It gives off a lot more light than these things.”
She merely shooed me inside as though I hadn’t spoken. Come to think about it, none of the females were indulging in their usual chatter. There was an air of solemnity about them that made me sit up and take notice. Whatever we were doing was very important to the Buri. Could this be the cave others of the race were hiding in? Was I going to meet them? Or would I have to jump through a few more hoops first?
The group paused in the entrance, waiting until all the females held lit torches, then Auntie Em headed deeper into the cave. With Churka on one side and Lurran on the other, I tagged along, observing how the wavering fires created moving shadows on the rough walls. A natural cave, then, as opposed to man-made.
We traveled approximately one hundred yards before the tunnel branched. Taking the left-hand passage, my group continued onward. At the next branch, we went right and I observed a subtle alteration in the atmosphere.
All my experience with caves to the contrary, the deeper we went, the warmer it got. The rise in temperature wasn’t uncomfortable, but it was noticeable. At the same time, the humidity increased and the air took on a slightly astringent quality that stung my nose. Five more steps and my skin began to tingle as though I’d stepped into a field of static electricity. When I glanced down, the fine hair on my arms was standing erect.
Okay, this was just not a good example of hidden living quarters for a bunch of Buri. That hair-on-end thing would get annoying really fast. I couldn’t picture having to put up with it for ten or more cycles.
I’d barely registered this phenomenon when Auntie Em stopped and placed her torch in a bracket mounted on the cavern wall. The flames lit a fissure just big enough to allow one person at a time to pass through, and even then it would be a tight fit.
Before I could move, she took my arm and tugged me to her side, then gestured to the other females. Churka went first, picking her way delicately through the opening. Midway, she began an atonal chant that sent chills racing down my spine.
One by one, the others followed her, each repeating her actions, until only Auntie Em and I were left in the tunnel. When the last female had cleared the opening, Auntie Em pushed me forward. Tentatively, holding my torch high, I walked into the fissure, sending up a small request to the Goddess that they wouldn’t expect me to sing. The sad truth is that the geneticist who spliced and diced me hadn’t considered a pleasant singing voice necessary to my job qualifications. As a result, I couldn’t carry a tune in a stasis box.
Sure enough, halfway through Auntie Em poked me in the back. With a wince, I sorted desperately through my mental archives and came up with something that might work. “Ohm,” I intoned. It seemed to satisfy her, because she stopped poking me.
I kept it up until I reached the end of the fissure, ducking to clear the shorter exit. My lips rounded to emit another hum as I straightened, but the sound never made it out. Instead I plowed to a halt, my jaw dropping.
Holy shit! What I’d entered was the biggest freaking geode in the universe. Or at least the biggest I’d ever heard of. My stunned gaze ran up the walls to the domed top, eyes blinking as the light from the torches reflected from millions of crystals in every shape and color known to man. It was like being inside a rainbow.
Good grief. I could have saved myself a long walk and Quilla Dorn’s dubious company if I’d known about this place earlier. My eyes narrowed. The subtle electrical influence I’d felt in the tunnel was stronger here, and I’d swear it was coming from the crystals.
A surge of excitement slammed into me, nearly lifted me off my feet. Had I finally discovered what Dynatec was after? I’d be willing to take bets on it. Now I needed a sample for Max to analyze. I was pretty damn sure I knew what those crystals were, but I needed proof.
I was still gawking when Auntie Em urged me forward, and I saw that the other females had formed a loose circle around a pool in the middle of the geode. The astringent smell I’d noticed was emanating from the water, so strong now that it made my eyes tear up.
After taking my torch and placing in a wall bracket near the entry, she led me to the head of the circle. At some unseen signal, all the females removed their kechics, placed them on the cavern floor, and then sat down on them. Hastily, I followed suit, covertly studying the Buri’s anatomy. It was the first time I’d seen any of them naked, and I’m happy to report there were no surprises in that area. It boded well for a male Buri-human female relationship when the female equipment in question appeared identical to that of the indigenous population.
Curiosity satisfied, I slapped down my hormones and checked to see what we were doing next. Not much, apparently. The others were sitting still, eyes closed, chanting away. As insurance against being poked again, I shut my eyes and let out another “Ohm” while my thoughts drifted.
I really wished there was a way Max could record this event. Our social anthropologists would go into raptures of delight over a ceremony like this one. Did it
have religious overtones? I thought it did, even suspected it was some kind of purification ritual to prepare us for a rite that would take place tomorrow.
But why was I being singled out, along with Thor and Junior, for special treatment? Because I was a guest? I mulled that over for a second. Maybe this was my official adoption into the tribe, I decided happily. It would certainly explain why Brownie challenged Thor’s leadership when he did. Yeah, that had to be it. The fight was a last-ditch attempt to stop Thor from bringing me into the tribe and making me Shushanna. Nothing else made sense.
Having solved that dilemma to my own satisfaction, my mind shifted to more mundane concerns, like my empty stomach. More time passed, and gradually my breathing evened out, my heart beating in rhythm with the chanting. A strange lassitude stole over me, held me in its grip, and on some level I was aware of power being amplified, gathered and focused.
And aimed at me.
Alarmed, I struggled uselessly, unable to so much as twitch a finger.
Peace.
The voice, oddly like Auntie Em’s, whispered in my head, so calm and serene that I immediately relaxed. There was nothing here to be afraid of. I had probably fallen asleep and was dreaming the entire thing anyway. Even when the voice came again, I accepted it without a single qualm.
Bless this female. Purify and consecrate her to your purpose. Open the pathways that she might meet her destiny.
Okay, things were getting a little out of hand here. With a supreme effort of will, I grabbed what consciousness I had left and forced my eyes open, watching Auntie Em suspiciously from beneath my lashes. As far as I could tell, she hadn’t moved. Neither had the other females. The chanting continued in the same, low monotonous thread, and no one paid undue attention to me.
Slowly, I faced forward again and let my eyes close once more. And that’s the last thing I remember until Churka and Lurran led me out of the water.
Close Encounters Page 16