by Amber Lynn
“I’m pretty sure the knife was meant for the man holding her. If you’d be kind enough to find someone willing to donate a little blood, we can get her back to normal and be out of your hair.”
There was little doubt in Krinla’s mind that the knife found where it was supposed to be. There was a chance Hulin would’ve wanted a matching knife in the man, but he’d want to punish Krinla for being anywhere around him.
“I don’t think my ears deceived me when I heard Hunter offering his blood for the cause. Let him give it to her and then he can take you back to your civil war, or whatever it is you have going on. Your problems aren’t ours.”
The man seemed sure of that. Krinton could easily make their problems everyone’s, but Krinla knew he’d try to be diplomatic. Their species wasn’t always known for keeping their tempers in check, so it was always interesting to see how long it lasted.
“So you heard him offer, but decided to stop listening by the time I said he couldn’t give her blood. Is there maybe someone else around here in charge? Because I’m starting to doubt your intellect.”
There wasn’t any obvious anger in Krinton’s words, but the sigh that came at the end of them let everyone know he was getting tired of the conversation. Krinla was tired of not being able to contribute anything, so she was just hoping they could settle on getting her blood. Where they went and what they did after that could all be worked out at a later time.
“For a situation like the one we’re in, I am the person in charge. Hunter, why don’t you take your friends back to where you found them and jump back here so you can hand over your remotes. You were told to follow your mission and only a few days in you’ve screwed that up royally.”
A quiet growl rumbled around Krinla’s body. His hold of her had loosened a minuscule amount during all the talking, so he tightened his arms again to make her more of an appendage to his body than a separate person.
“You don’t understand what you’re saying. The little girl could’ve killed all of you probably ten times by now if they wanted to harm you. They need help, and we’re going to give it to them. I know what remains of the government says you have to be here, but this is my father’s lab, so he’s the one in charge and the one you need to clear things with.”
Krinla heard some huffing around the room, but no one jumped in with a response. It seemed a little odd to her that the man’s father wasn’t already there in the room if he was the one in charge.
“Not to pile on too many reasons for you to fear us, but those weapons of yours would barely scratch us,” Krinton stated. “I don’t want to see things turn uncivil, especially since I already know that it’s only a matter of time before your species dies out.”
“Go get Dr. Burnett.” The man didn’t sound happy about giving the order.
There were noises of movement, but Krinla couldn’t tell how many people jumped into action. It was unclear whether the doctor mentioned was the person in charge. She hoped he or she was so they could quit playing around. The man holding her had to be getting tired of trying to keep her off the ground.
“That your father?” Krinton asked.
“Yes, I came back sooner than I’d planned, so we’re stuck dealing with the guards. I warned you it wasn’t going to be a friendly environment. You obviously didn’t need me to tell you what direction we traveled.”
Some sorrow made it into the man’s voice, and hearing him in pain caused Krinla’s chest to tighten. It wasn’t a pleasant feeling with everything else in flux.
“I was pretty sure we were going backward. I don’t think I’ve ever heard or read about time travel technology being available, other than in works of fiction, but it’d make sense to use it if you could. Has the purge already started or do you just have knowledge that it’s coming?”
Krinla had lost track of the words around the time it sounded like Krinton said something about time travel. He mentioned them going backward, which was a concept totally lost on Krinla. A person couldn’t travel forward or backward in time.
“That’s something we should probably wait to discuss later. It’s not like you’ll hurt the timeline if you go back, but it’s better to keep some things in the air for the time being. Is there any real threat of her dying while we wait? I imagine my dad has his nose stuck in a book, so it may be a few minutes.”
The unit of time Krinla assumed he was talking about wasn’t familiar to her, but she hoped he was exaggerating about the time it would take. She couldn’t see what the room looked like where they were, but back at their home base it was just a blink of an eye and you were able to find who you were looking for.
“I can take her from you if she’s getting too heavy,” Krinton suggested.
The man was quick to turn down the offer. “Will I ever be able to give her blood?”
It was an odd question, and Krinla assumed the other people in the room thought he’d lost his mind for asking it. Without a trade deal, people rarely wanted to give up their blood.
“That’s up to you two, and definitely a conversation to move to another time. Usually, our bodies don’t shut down like hers did until we’ve gone days without blood. Krinla didn’t realize it, but the closer we got to finding you out in the woods, the slower she got.”
“And there’s a reason for that?” the man asked. It sounded like the rest of the room was just going to hang out without interrupting until the doctor came.
“Yes, there’s a reason for it, and for her body shut down. With her lack of blood, she would’ve attacked you, and her body stopped her from doing that.”
Krinla was trying to follow along and even hummed questioning noises in her head as she listened. She was missing something as Krinton danced around whatever he was trying to say. It made her wonder if the explanation was for the benefit of others in the room with them, or if it had merit.
The idea that her body wouldn’t let her attack the man didn’t seem that farfetched in her mid. It was kind of cute, because she hadn’t missed all the warning signs going on in her head about the man, but overall she didn’t want to hurt him.
“Is there anyone else we need to keep her away from for food reasons?”
It was a weird question, one Krinla speculated was more popular when there were more species. She couldn’t sense what the others in the room had running through their veins. Even without smelling or listening to their heartbeats, Krinla knew none of them would have the sugary scent about them.
“No, the blood can come from anyone else and I promise she won’t need much.”
That promise seemed like a bit of a stretch based on how Krinla felt. She’d never seen anyone as dry as her, so she didn’t have a good gauge on what was needed, but she expected it was more than just a small cup.
“If nothing else, I’m pretty sure we can get my dad to agree to give some. He’s a scientist and unlike the armed guerillas you’ve met so far, he’ll be interested in meeting and getting to know you guys.”
That sounded like a nice sentiment, but it was hard to believe after the cold shoulder they’d gotten initially. Krinla spent the few moments that the conversation lulled trying to get her eyes to open. The lack of vision was starting to drive her crazy.
“Well, Hunter, it sure looks like you’ve gotten yourself into a mess this time.”
The newcomer to the room didn’t sound exactly like the man holding Krinla, but there was a hint of something in his tone that was similar. There was also a hint of humor, something that had been missing from the conversation.
Chapter Eleven
Before anyone could reply, the man continued speaking. “Is this why you were so excited when you got back yesterday? You made contact.”
Ignoring the question, the man holding Krinla moved some, jostling Krinla just a bit. When the movement was done, it felt like she was probably down on the floor again, but he still had an arm tucked underneath her as he moved hair away from her face.
“Is he okay?”
The question co
nfused Krinla at first. She didn’t know who the he was and why the man would need to know if he was okay.
“Yes, as I said, you’re the only one who can’t.” Krinton’s response helped clear up some of her confusion.
“I wasn’t sure if that somehow applied to him since we’re related. Dad, before I answer any questions, she needs blood, and apparently, it can’t come from me. Will you please give her some so we can see how hurt she is?”
“She’s got a knife sticking out of her side, so I’d say she’s not in great shape.”
The older man’s voice was closer to them. Krinla tried to listen for his steps to see how fast he was moving, but she had trouble picking them up.
“The knife isn’t the issue. She just needs blood,” Krinton said.
Warm fingers traced over her lips, causing a feeling deep in Krinla’s stomach to ignite. She wasn’t sure what it was, because it wasn’t hunger, but it felt wrong with a group of people standing around them.
“And how exactly would this blood be delivered? Is she able to bite?”
It was interesting that the men with the weapons seemed to be worried about the Draculs, but the two men without them were more fascinated with something else. At least she assumed the man walking towards her didn’t have a weapon. Krinla wasn’t sure what to label that something else they were interested in, but it seemed like they wanted to know more about them than shoot them.
“You’d either need to put the blood in a glass of some sort or hold your wrist over her mouth while someone propped it open,” Krinton explained. “I’m fairly certain it won’t take her long to take over, but even then, she won’t bite.”
“Did someone pull out her teeth?” The question came from the angry man who wanted them gone.
“Shut up, Liam. I’d like to have her input before we think about next steps. Please, give her some blood.”
Nothing else was said and Krinla didn’t sense any specific movements. Her frustrations about not being able to see and pick up things like normal made her want to scream. It felt like an eternity before her head was tilted back and fingers pushed on her chin to open her mouth.
She couldn’t smell the blood, even when it was right in front of her face, but she felt the first drips of it fall on her tongue. It was different, not necessarily good or bad, just different. There wasn’t a bitter edge to it, and at the same time, it didn’t taste as rich as the blood she usually drank.
As the liquid flowed down her throat, Krinla focused on trying to move her fingers. There was no urge within her to bite, but she wanted to make sure she didn’t scare the person away who’d finally agreed to help her.
“She’s getting warmer. There’s still a chill, but she doesn’t feel like ice.”
“For the time being, she will always be cold to you, but not feeling like ice is a good sign. Krinla, are you able to talk yet?”
Krinton’s question didn’t make a lot of sense with her mouth propped open and blood filling it. That didn’t stop her from trying to respond, which ended up being more of a gurgle than anything else. It was an improvement, but not big enough that she was going to try to spring to her feet.
“That’s a good sign too,” her father continued. “We need to pull the blade out before she gets too full. There’s no reason to waste what you’ve generously given her.”
“I’ll do it,” the man holding her said.
Krinla wasn’t sure how he thought he was going to do that with one arm underneath her and the other holding her chin. As far as she knew, he only had to the two arms. A new hand touching her face made it easy for him to let go and reposition his left hand. The heat of it wasn’t as intense and almost felt cold taking over the spot.
“Hold on there just a second.”
There wasn’t a time too soon to not have to hear that voice again. The man’s name was apparently Liam, but that seemed like too nice of a name for him in Krinla’s mind, so she decided to continue thinking of him as the angry man.
Evidently, she wasn’t the only one tired of hearing him, as the blade in her side caused a little pressure before it was taken out. There was no pain, but it wasn’t comfortable either.
“I’ll be taking that,” Krinton said just before some metallic clicking noises echoed in the room.
“You might want to rethink that option. Throw the knife away, Hunter.”
It was probably a bad move to feed Krinla before they found some privacy. Not darting over to kill the guy with the big mouth was going to be an issue. She couldn’t believe Krinton hadn’t already taken care of the problem.
“Your friend here wasn’t wrong when he said Rya could kill you all before you blinked, so what exactly do you think I could do if I really wanted to?” Krinton left the air open for a second to see if he could get a reply. “The knife is from our time, which means it’s probably made of materials not known to your species. For the time being, I think it’s best if we keep our technology to ourselves.”
“He’s right, both about the knife staying in his possession and that he doesn’t need it to kill you. Why don’t you guys take a break and give us some room? As long as you don’t provoke them, I think we’ll be okay.”
Krinla liked the guy giving her blood even more after he suggested the room lose some of its inhabitants. Her sense of smell seemed to be coming back and what her nose picked up was confusing her more than anything else. There were at least ten other people in the room, and they all smelled like fear.
Making the small strides that she had, Krinla focused on opening her eyes. As far as she could tell, moving her hand wasn’t getting her very far, so she worked to get a look at what was going on around her. She’d been able to paint a picture in her head, but it was vague with one guy who had a giant head as the central figure. She figured the angry guy had to have a big head to hold in all that irritation.
It wasn’t instant, but while everyone else stood around and stared at her, the ability to stare back slowly returned. At first, she could only see shadows. She figured there was supposed to be an arm, or at the very least a hand in front of her face, but it looked more like a creature of some sort.
Krinla attempted to shake her head to make things clearer and was surprised when the pinkish object moved. The shaking didn’t make things better as far as her vision, but it did lift her spirits.
“Hello there. It’s nice to meet you.”
Krinla couldn’t see the man’s face around his arm, but that was only temporary. She was curious how much he looked like his son and whether their species aged. She’d heard humans did, but she was still fuzzy about whether they had confirmation that they were human.
“How much more does she need?” The question was accompanied by fingers prodding the wound in her side. It would’ve made a little more sense coming from the man giving the blood, but his son was anxious.
Krinla hadn’t been counting drops, but the man had to be getting close to his limit. She’d been told the bottles of blood they had back home were usually the combination of more than one person and she always thought it was more than just trying to blend the flavors.
“Do you have control of your tongue, Krinla?” The question sounded odd, but Krinla nodded her head slightly to answer her father. She didn’t want to display the ability while blood was still flowing. “Put your wrist closer to her mouth and she’ll seal your wound for you.”
Chances were the command was as confusing to others as it was to Krinla. She’d never heard about her saliva fixing someone else’s wounds. She assumed that was what would do the fixing, not the little bumps on her tongue.
There was no hesitation lowering the wrist in front of her face. It had already seemed close enough to lick, so Krinla darted her tongue out before it got too close to her face. The blood was still coming out, which seemed different based on the fact that the wound in her side had already sealed up. Whatever species they were visiting, they lacked basic healing properties.
The idea of licking a person wasn’
t one that went over well with Krinla, so the darting of her tongue was quick and got right to the task at hand. She didn’t mind tasting the blood, but the slight saltiness that came along with the man’s skin clashed with the flavor. She did her best not to show she wasn’t having a good time. Whether the men holding and feeding her were nice or not, the other men who hadn’t left the room weren’t, and she didn’t want to give them the satisfaction of knowing she was uncomfortable.
“That’s amazing. Does your entire species have that ability, or is she special?”
There was wonder in the man’s voice as he lifted his arm and inspected his healed wound. With his arm out of the way, Krinla could see his face a little better. Her eyes were still blurry, but she could see his skin was lighter than his son’s, but his eyes were the color of the sky and his hair was even lighter than his son’s. Their noses seemed to be the same shape and size, kind of narrow, but small to fit their faces nicely.
“Krinla is special, but that trick is something we can all do. Thank you for helping her. You weren’t here when I introduced myself, I’m Krinton.”
Krinton’s arm extended above Krinla’s vantage point out towards the man. She didn’t see Rya being shuffled around, so he must have put her down at some point.
“You shake hands?” The man asked as he extended his own arm.
“No, but I assumed you did.”
Krinla didn’t know what they were doing as their hands connected and moved up and down a number of times. It seemed like it could’ve been some sort of greeting, but it wasn’t one she’d experienced.
“So you know a little about us and our customs. That’s great. I’m Noah. Dr. Noah Burnett if you want to get into titles. I expect we have a lot to talk about, especially about these two.”
The doctor’s face turned to look back down at Krinla, and for a brief moment, she tried to decipher the look she saw. There was maybe a little worry, mixed with fear, mixed with a smile. It was confusing, like everything around her seemed to be.