I sipped water as we moved on and considered how commonplace the bizarre anatomies would become over time. The idea pleased me. My tread lightened as my mind freed itself from the constraints of seeing similar as the safe ideal and different as flawed.
‘Not that way.’ Lumen jerked her head. ‘The main roads are dangerously busy during the light hours.’ She flashed her teeth. The fleeting smile had curves edged with something diabolical. ‘Not to worry. I know a shortcut.’ She set off with the Rä orbiting her like satellites.
Beowyn sent her a withering look. His bouncing stride flattened to heavy plodding. He threw a sour glance at Éorik. His Commander arched a brow and extended his hand, indicating we’d follow next and he’d bring up the rear.
We diverted down a squalid side road, the narrow, high walls caked in filth and littered with festering detritus.
I flung an arm over my nose and breathed in shallow pulls through my teeth. My foot slid in something gooey, and my hand shot out. I cringed. I flapped my hand over my hip, distressed I’d almost touched the oozing wall.
Beowyn slipped in muck a moment later. Gracefully shifting balance onto a brawny leg, he nimbly kicked up the other to scrape the sole of his boot against an offset brick. He muttered darkly about the bleeding human heart and the exorbitant costs to replace imported beast skins.
I tried to ask about the bleeding heart comment, but ended up retching into the bend of my elbow, the strength of the noxious stench causing me to sway. A gauzy veil of darkness blanketed my vision just we turned onto a wider thoroughfare. Sight, sound and breathable air hit me like a slap. I rocked on my heels, swallowing bile and shaking off the dizzy buzz in my ears.
Éorik palmed the small of my back, head dipping to check I’d recovered enough from my near faint to continue.
Globular capsules zoomed amongst the scruffy blend of alien breeds, swerving at impossible angles to escape collision. Exhaust fumes left tie-dye trails in spaghetti tangles, and the true sky was covered by a manufactured neon cloud, making it difficult to focus your gaze without squinting. Head craned back to marvel at the tangle of wires and firefly lights, I was hooked around the waist and spun aside. A honking capsule whizzed past, whirring discs churning mud and spattering sludge up my legs.
‘Eyes open, sweet Sìne.’ Beowyn bade me stay between him and Éorik. He caressed my nape and brushed a kiss to my temple. ‘I will not have you harmed.’
I smoothed my hands over his powerfully built chest and murmured thanks. The diligent strokes of my fingers left me breathless. More so when a lusty rumble shook my palms.
The painful tension between us had eased since my disastrous attempt at meaningful conversation.
Resentment lurked in the shadows, but I was happy to exist in the shiny bubble of the present, his strong arms tight around me, his striking eyes locked on my face as if it were sustenance.
Our behaviour was classic avoidance. The inevitable backlash from our repressed feelings was going to be ugly. Could I find the energy to care? After my crying jag in the cold-ore storeroom, I’d exorcised enough hurt to frolic in the sunny pool of denial.
It seemed to me as if Paniki had grown from the outside in. Prefabricated blocks were stacked in mind-bending cantilevers, forming overground tunnels and appearing as raised scars on the planet crust. I had to weave along the cracked pathway to avoid stinking fluids dripping onto my head. Streams of waste overflowed the storm grates projecting from the walls. The rusted pipework flushed through the greywater of the affluent echelons and contaminated the open gutters of the sunless undercity.
Dark spaces I dared peek inside revealed yellow-fleshed creatures on their knees or pressed against the walls.
Rhythmic grunts drifting from these couplings made reddish splotches dapple my face. I wrinkled my nose at Beowyn when he glanced over his shoulder and noticed my preoccupation with not noticing the breathy noises.
Others waited at the mouths of murky alleyways, unwashed, unclad and, apparently, dirt cheap.
I sidled past these dead-eyed people with my gaze cast down.
Kiosks lining the street were fashioned from scavenged debris, their riveted metal roofs wedged at a slant, and the nailed together supports creaking and uneven. Merchants hawked tattered wares and dented goods as if they were salvaged treasure, and on more than one occasion, Éorik snarled at an overeager seller who reached to grab me, begging attention.
On the bends and twists of the street were food vendors. From them came the hiss and pop of fatty meat hitting hot pans. Smoke and heat from their cooking fires sent eye-stinging aromas into the crowd, drawing twitchy customers, dirty feathers and scabrous tentacles handing over tarnished coinage for grease-stained packages.
Exiting into the open space of the quadrangle, the feel and look of the district veered into peaceful beauty. The manner and appearance of the populace shifted too. I was disorientated by the abrupt transition. To the amusement of my group, I backtracked. I again walked from one street to the other, assured I hadn’t hallucinated the sharp divide. Tall, light-strewn trees lined the broad, paved walkways and the kiosks became dainty shop fronts, and the grubby capsules turned into sleek conveyances that hovered in ordered lanes. Habitation pods snaked into the upper atmosphere in spiral chains, and in the distance towered the edifice of the Intergalactic Alliance headquarters.
My eyes skipped over the bustling concourse, and it was then I spotted the stacked cages. I thought we’d avoid the area, but was led through the regimented rows and brought to the back of a crowd at an auction block. The stink of sweaty fear and loathing from the imprisoned clashed with the thrumming excitement from the spectators.
Lumen stared at the emaciated alien dragged onto the podium, too still, her body flexed into a taut line.
The captive hunched on the floor, shackles too heavy to hold. Sallow flesh appeared waxy under the bright light, ribcage and spine pushing against its skin. The flabby sag at its belly suggested a rapid loss of muscle from starvation. Its dozen-eyes happened to fix on me, brimming with helpless desperation.
‘That is a Zozon,’ Beowyn replied.
Chapter 20
I hadn’t realised I’d asked. ‘Why?’ It was all my numb lips managed.
Beowyn bent to meet my gaze, his showing concern at my pallor. ‘They are a nonviolent species, hailing from a soft planet with a lower point of gravity than the known inhabitable worlds.’
‘What does that mean?’
Lumen turned enough to flash her profile, expression tight because she knew the answer and didn’t like it.
‘The gentle terrain and temperate atmosphere affected their evolution. Their bodies developed in a way inferior to most species.’ Beowyn rubbed my back, each circle applying pressure to draw me closer, comforting. ‘They are susceptible to enslavement. They are good in water and on land, which is perfect for mining and construction on many developing worlds.’
I rubbed my chest. ‘That does no make it right.’
He nodded agreement, but said, ‘Ecosystems are designed bottom heavy. ‘It is sad, but perhaps a fact of nature we cannot defeat.’
‘I refuse to believe that.’ Lumen briefly aimed hostile eyes his way then returned her scary intensity back to the auction. ‘This was where the L’Odo planned to bring me.’ She rubbed her forearm. ‘There was a storm blocking the jumpway, a fluke of nature setting me on an alternate path.’
‘I bend knee to Grandfather in gratitude.’ Venomous stroked a hand down her cheek. ‘We are fated.’
This is where poached humans would end up?
Each time I learned something about Lumen’s experiences as an abductee, I wanted to cry.
Watching the trade, I realised I wouldn’t have survived if our places had been exchanged. I wasn’t strong enough. I doubted many on Earth were.
‘The Bax Prime hates me because I told him to his face this,’ she jerked a hand out, ‘is wrong. The Alliance headquarters should move planet.’
Beowyn rubbe
d his beard. ‘You are trying to force the Baxnonians to end their slave trading season.’
‘You’re bloody right I am. If they don’t I’m pushing to have the Alliance headquarters on Ra. It will assist them in reintegrating back into the universe.’
The sounds of misery from the cages beat against my ears. ‘Maybe we can buy and free some?’ Awful as it was it didn’t rouse a fire of passion in me as it did Lumen. I felt pity and horrified enough to help a few if possible.
‘What would we do with them?’ Éorik asked not unkindly. ‘Such people are conditioned into mindlessness. They would end up preyed upon by the immoral of whatever society we happened to settle them in.’
‘We could try.’ My voice was small. ‘It can no hurt to try.’
‘You cannot free slaves subjugated for generations and expect them to manage. Civilisation is not built in a day but over aeons. To expect the newly liberated to embrace the innate sense of authority systematically and viciously beaten from them and their descendants is a cruelty that I will never understand.’ With his resonant voice risen to press his point, eyes narrowed with emotion, he sounded and looked like the High Commander he was. ‘They must be built up. Educated to the levels of their oppressors and shown the ways of their new planet. Financial support to underpin the freedoms won is also vital.’
‘Freedom is as much a mind set as a physical state.’ Venomous nodded as the Verak spoke. ‘I know this well from captivity at the hands of the L’Odo.’ His gaze landed on his mate and softened. ‘I no longer felt trapped once I had my Lumen with me. My hearts were freed.’
‘Many people consider themselves free when all manner of taxation, societal pressure and political rhetoric chains them.’ Éorik stabbed a razored claw at the naked alien dragged onto the block. Bidding was furious. ‘This is simply the ugliest, most prominent incarnation of slavery.’
Beowyn brushed his fingers along my collarbone. ‘My Commander speaks the truth even if he does so harshly.’
‘Believe what you like. This wasn’t about furthering my agenda.’ Lumen’s steady gaze tried to impart something important. ‘It’s about making sure Sìne comprehends the consequences of not being recognised as a powerful sentient out here.’ She exhaled in a burst. ‘I’ve told you of the good. I had to make sure you understood the bad. Being Registered is great. It’s reassuring to have warriors for mates, but you must remember they’re not invincible. Without their protection,’ she raised an arm to point, ‘the alien up there is you.’
Beowyn said, ‘This is not for you to do,’ in such a harsh tone I flinched.
Fiercely hissed a warning. Cobra crossed all four massive arms. Venomous shook his quills but did not speak, curved fangs bared and dripping poison.
Lumen didn’t bat an eyelid. ‘You keep her in the dark to protect her. I get it.’ She inched forward. ‘She needed to see it, Wyn. That way she won’t stand mute the next time we meet the Premier.’ Her attention shifted. ‘Do you remember what you told me, Éorik? This unthinkable atrocity happens a stone’s throw from the assembly elected to keep watch over and guide us.’ She spoke as if she remembered him verbatim.
From the look on his face, she had.
Éorik lifted his chin, defensive, eyes holding a quiet dignity.
‘Remember those words, Sìne.’ Lumen’s voice lowered to a whisper. ‘This planet is where you’d come for justice if something happened to your Verak. After walking through the slums and seeing this legal purchase of souls, do you think you’d get it? Do you think any of those rich savages would care?’
‘I hear you.’ My family could not end up sold on an auction block. I wrapped an arm around my middle. ‘Vayhalun isn’t like this, right?’
‘It is free of slavery but has its own troubles as do all worlds.’ Beowyn’s gaze travelled the quadrangle. ‘Our troubles centre on too much freedom opposed to too little.’ He clasped my chin to steal my gaze. Silvery pupils floated in a spill of blackness. ‘Know this. Lumen is right, but you must trust I will protect you. My Defender will protect you. That is no small thing for we are mighty.’
He promised protection, but I was aware at no point did he vow I’d never be hurt. Fate was capricious and merciless. He was nothing but honest, so I nodded, his words a true comfort.
Éorik pulled out his SonCom. He flashed Beowyn the screen. ‘We have been summoned.’
We returned to the Council chambers and avoided the under-city. I’d seen what I needed to see. We entered the council chambers and plunged into the middle of an argument.
‘I will not stand for this.’
‘Yes, yes, yes.’ Chirring, the Premier sounded beleaguered. “Your comments have been noted for further study. All sentients under Prime Edict Five retain the right to mate. We wish to ascertain if your union laws have changed since the human-Rä mating.’
‘This is an outrage,’ continued the plummy British voice. ‘You refuse to negotiate with us. You refuse to recognise my authority, yet you expect me to give consent for you to do God knows what with Heaven knows who–.’ The well-dressed woman on the screen squinted. ‘Who has just entered the room? I cannot see, it’s rather dark where you are.’
I gawked. ‘Madame Prime Minister?’
‘Indeed. You are?’ She peered at me then froze. Her face slackened. ‘You’re human.’ She held up a staying hand that trembled. ‘What the bloody hell is going on?’ Weston looked off screen, her face turning an unsightly shade of pink. Her voice lowered to a spitting hiss. ‘I’ve gotten daily reports that nothing has entered our atmosphere since the first incident! I was assured our best people were working on this. You? You’re a bloody hack. Figure out how they were able to land undetected or you’ll spend the rest of your career teaching preschoolers what happens when a supposed doctorate in Cosmology is shoved up Uranus.’ Weston faced the screen. She flashed white, straight teeth and smoothed her lapel. ‘My apologies. This second meeting is momentous, so things are a tad hectic here.’ She cleared her throat. ‘Who are you?’
Kind of not wanting to piss her off, I answered.
‘Have you been harmed?’ Behind her, a waxed oak panel bore the insignia of her office. She sat under a heavy wood desk in a padded green leather armchair. Her handsome face was etched with strain, her blonde hair fading to grey, the lines around the eyes and mouth deep cuts. ‘Miss Grae?’
‘It’s technically Ms ThunderClaw now. I was recently married.’
‘You….’ Weston pressed a hand to her forehead. ‘This cannot be happening again.’ She straightened and folded her hands on the tabletop, shaking her sleek blonde bob from the tailored shoulders of her tweed suit. ‘The last of my citizens to be abducted caused pandemonium. Not only did she make it near impossible to break the news of extraterrestrial contact in a calm, dignified manner to the general public, she alienated the only species that seemed interested in furthering communication and thus delayed our membership into the intergalactic community.’
‘None of that was my fault.’ Lumen tore away from Venomous. ‘You were the one who ran your mouth, and what was I supposed to do? Is that what you’re telling people? It wasn’t my fault.’ Taking in the luminous white of Lumen’s darting eyeballs and heaving chest, I made a note to myself to have a talk with her again about the guilt she seemed to be carrying around.
Weston leant across the desk. Her eyes popped. ‘Is she there with you?’
Lumen shrunk back mouthing, ‘I’m invisible,’ then slid behind Cobra’s bulk.
Weston made a throaty noise to regain my attention. Her brow quirked. ‘Well? Is she?’
I tried to get back on track. ‘My family and I–.’
‘They took more than just you?’ Her voice edged towards shrill. ‘How many will they take next time?’
I jerked a shoulder. ‘My daughter came with me, of course, but so did my uncle and three cousins. We tried to tie up any loose ends, but we were in a hurry, so a few bits were left up in the air.’ I made a face. ‘Sorry about that.’
‘The human female is mated to a Verak male,’ the Premier said.
‘Sìne is my One, leader of humans.’ Beowyn sauntered up next to me. His hair shone with a blue sheen even in the dim, and his fangs glinted. He put a possessive hand on the back of my neck. ‘Good Greetings. It is a shame we could not celebrate the blending of our species in person, but I was seeking a bride, not an alliance. May our future generations meet as friends.’
Eyes bugging, Weston leant forward. ‘Good God, this is your husband? He’s like a walking, talking lion creature with ram horns and demon eyes.’ She glanced off the screen when someone unseen exclaimed at her description, whispering questions.
I scowled and studied my husband. He did have a slinky quality to how he moved, and his features were bluntly feline, but it was the first time I’d considered him that way. He’d stopped being an alien to my mind and had simply become Beowyn.
Weston asked, ‘Are you pregnant with an alien foetus as Miss Young is?’
‘My One has not yet been given my breeding seed,’ Beowyn said. ‘Lumen birthed a healthy male cub. Rejoice.’
Blinking owlishly, Weston sucked her lips into her mouth. ‘She survived the birth?’ True concern flittered across her expression, but then her face hardened. ‘While you may have chosen to leave, Miss Grae, there may be others who do not share your sense of adventure. This is getting out of hand.’ Weston left her seat. The pearls under her chin clacked as she gestured forcefully. ‘The Alliance cannot keep allowing random warlords and suchlike to drop down and snatch my citizens. We are not cattle.’
ThunderClaw: Science Fiction Romance (Alien Warrior Book 2) Page 25