by Troy Snyder
“Oh nothing, your highness, I’m just surprised you’re sitting this close.” Alexander replied turning away, emphasizing the words ‘your highness’ to stab at Arri.
“Don’t get used to it. And could you not eat like a total wild animal?”
Alexander looked around the table, all the others were eating with their hands, grabbing whatever was put in front of them and tearing it apart. Flecks of the roast quail, an animal native to the Craxi home world and introduced on earth – but there the size of a large dog, were stuck in several Craxi beards and the grease stained their tunics. He looked toward the table of Broushin and noticed all used utensils while eating, he had grown so used to the habits of the Craxi he had not even realized, but still, the way Arri said it irked him.
“Oh, I’m sorry princess. Maybe you should go eat at the table with the rest of the little people.” He couldn’t resist taking another jab at her.
Arri was about to respond angrily but she bit her lip. She was not going to let him goad her into another string of arguments. That’s all it ever was with them, argument after argument, yet he still caught her when she fell. Always helped her when she needed it, sometimes without asking, maybe this human was not so bad after all. She even found the lack of formality he used with her refreshing. Being a princess - everyone, even the other humans, deferred to her royalty, besides Odin and his aides, of course. But Alexander, he called her just plain Arri, and even made fun of her sometimes, well a lot, but she had some of it coming her way from how she acted.
Again, the image of him calling her cute flashed into her mind and she felt her face begin to flush. She decided it was at least fair to give him a try, even if he were only a small, basically beardless human.
After the meal Odin called Alexander to his table. This had become routine in the time he had been eating in the great hall. As usual it was probably the information on the day’s plans or how things were progressing, but as always, he would sit through it. He had become a confidant of Odin’s in a way and it made him feel unique.
Odin greeted Alexander with a wave. “Good noon Alexander,” Though he spoke the human tongue that Alexander did, some things did not translate well, such as his greetings.
“It would be good afternoon, if you can call it that. I find it difficult to tell day from night cooped up on this ship.” Alexander replied.
“Ah, then I have good news for you. We are low on water and we need to restock. There is no place nearby that can restock us, so we have to retrieve it ourselves. There’s a moon not too far from here that contains water in an ice form. We will be landing ships on it for retrieval. I wanted to ask if you wished to be part of this expedition.”
“Of course, I would be delighted.” Alexander said without delay. He loved exploring and learning new things.
“More on that matter later. How are you and Arri doing?”
“Well she hasn’t killed me yet, so that’s a good sign.”
“Indeed, it is. Tell me, how do you feel about her?”
“She’s a stubborn little spoiled princess. Quite attractive one I’ll give her that, but still.”
“Maybe you just don’t know her? Maybe you should try giving her a chance?”
“I have before, but she still treats me like a dog.”
“Hmm. I have faith you’ll work it out. Did you not want to marry for the truce?”
“It’s not that, but I feel that marriage should be between two people in love. Not decided by others for two people who don’t even know each other.”
“True enough, but I see a spark there. You two will work it out soon enough, believe me.”
“If you say so, but to be honest I still feel uncomfortable about all this. Even if we do work it out, that does not mean she will ever love me, or I her for that matter.”
Odin let out a small laugh. “I have been around a long time, boy. A very long time. I see past the silly arguments and through to what is underneath. You two are both hard headed and don’t want to truly make the first move to bridge the gap. If you were to ever heed my advice, do so with this. Talk to her about the fight on earth but do it in a way that shows you meant no harm. Also, I see the way you look at her. Tell her your honest first thoughts when you saw her. That’s always a good one!” Odin continued to laugh.
“Great, relationship advice from someone older than dirt.” Alexander mumbled, but he knew Odin heard it and was about to apologize to their leader of a race of giants that could rip him apart for the insult.
Odin surprised him with his booming laugh causing others to look their way. “Oh, my boy. You always can make me laugh. Run along now. Go tell your wife you need to talk. Follow this old decrepit being’s advice.”
Chapter 20:
Alexander attempted to calm his heart as he approached Arri who was still at the table sipping her ale. She looked so small on the bench surrounded by giants. Even Trent and Antonio towered over her when standing. The top of her head only reached Alexander’s chin, but he knew full well she was a tiny force to be reckoned with.
From where he stood her could see her legs swinging underneath the bench, no dwarf’s feet could reach the ground and it was amusing to watch them try to get on the benches. Yet Alexander, while slightly amused by the sight, also felt like she was being extremely cute without even trying. He guessed it really was worth a shot to try to be with someone like her, at least he thought so.
Alexander approached from where Arri could not see him. He placed his hand on her shoulder to get her attention and got more than he bargained for. Arri was as agile as a cat when she felt the need to defend herself, which apparently was one of those moments. Grabbing Alexander by the wrist, she pulled hard causing him to lose balance and trip forward over the bench. With her free hand Arri grabbed behind her supposed attacker’s head and slammed it forward into the table.
Alexander’s body fell to the floor between the gap of the table and bench. He could vaguely hear laughing from all around as he clutched his face and tried to stop a wave of nausea from taking hold. Warmth trickled down his chin and he realized it was blood from a busted open lip and his nose felt like it was completely blocked from the blow it took.
Arri’s face came into view as tears from his blurry eyes began to melt away. Her face was clearly concerned as she knelt at his side under the table. “I am so sorry! I did not think, I just reacted!” She said and held out her hand as if she wanted to help but stopped short of touching him.
“S’okay. Should not have surprised you.” He said. His voice seemed off to him. Whether it was his nose, his lip, or his ringing head, he had no idea.
Arri disappeared for a moment then came back down under the table with a dry cloth and wiped away some of the blood. She took another cloth, one she had dipped in water and began wiping away the left-over blood to clean Alexander’s face.
He let her tend to him and watched her look of concentration as she attempted to do so without further injuring him. A smile could be felt on the edges of his mouth and he tried to repress it but could not do so. Immediately he regretted it as his lip opened up again.
“You idiot. I just cleaned that.” Arri said. “What are you smiling at anyway?”
“Nothing. Nothing at all.” He replied as he laid back on the ground. She stayed kneeling beside him for a moment, another look of concentration on her face as if she wanted to say something.
Before either could speak, Raixo’s giant head appeared underneath the table as he leaned down from where he sat. “This is not the time or the place for love making, Alexander.” He smiled. “No matter how forcefully she takes you under the table.”
Both Alexander’s and Arri’s face grew beet red causing Raixo to boom with laughter. He sat back up and told his joke again causing a round of laughter around the table. The two beneath could not look at one another after the joke and instead stayed in silence for a moment.
“We should get you to a Valkyrie.” Arri said at last.
“Righ
t. Let’s go.” As Alexander tried to move out from under the table he become extremely woozy and fell back down. He had no strength to raise himself again.
Arri’s face looked concerned. The hit to Alexander’s head must have been worse than they thought. She quickly enlisted Raixo’s help, who began laughing and saying she should not have been so rough in taking him down. She grew red but ignored the comment and follow Raixo as he carried Alexander easily away to the medical area.
Once Alexander was laid on a bed in an empty medical wing, Raixo excused himself to take care of important business. There was a cask of ale that was opened and it would be a shame to “let it sit and get stale.’
A Valkyrie arrived shortly after Raixo had left and looked over Alexander. The lip and nose were easily fixed, but the head trauma was not within their powers to heal. It would need to do so naturally. Or, if Alexander could, use his own energy to heal himself, without a brace. As the Valkyrie informed him, only his energy could heal such trauma at an unnatural speed, but it was exhausting and complicated.
“I suggest you just let yourself heal naturally. Please miss,” She said as she looked at Arri. “do not let him sleep tonight. Keep him talking and awake. We will reassess him in the morning.”
“Of course.” Arri replied as the Valkyrie exited the room leaving Alexander and Arri alone.
Silence took over once more between them. A rift that always seemed to widen whenever they were alone. Arri felt bad for what she had done to him but was afraid he was mad at her and that he did not even want her to speak to him. Alexander lay in his bed, his mind felt fuzzy, but he knew he wanted to talk to her like Odin had said but had no idea how to form the words.
Arri placed her hands in her lap and began wringing them. Her plain, teal blue shirt seemed to tighten around her chest as her nerves began to rise. Wiping her hands on her milk white leggings she began to speak, to finally break the silence.
“I’m sorry. This is my fault.” She said as she put her head down as if in shame.
Alexander looked over to her. He could see on her feature she was nervous, afraid even. She probably thought he was furious with her. “You moved like lightning,” He said and looking up she saw a slight smile on the corner of his mouth. “Just like when I first saw you fight. You moved like the wind and I was barely able to keep myself from being split in two. You are truly an amazing fighter.”
His compliment made her blush slightly. “I have seen you fight in the training area with Athils. You have improved quite a lot since I fought you.” She did not know how to respond in truth, but it felt right to compliment him in return, even if it was only half of one.
Alexander laid back and sighed. He closed his eyes and could feel Arri’s tension rise. In truth he just did not want to see her reaction at his next words. Afraid of what she might think. Yet before she could speak he forced the words out.
“When I first saw you back on Earth, when you removed your helmet, I thought to myself, ‘No way someone this stunningly beautiful is a warrior.’ Damn was I ever wrong. I almost got myself killed underestimating you. Now I see you’re a strong, gorgeous, and skilled warrior and leader. I know we got off on the wrong foot with the way things happened and I apologize for that. We both had our missions at the time and I hope you can forgive me for the past.”
Silence fell once more. No sound came from where Arri sat, but Alexander refused to open his eyes. He could not bear to look in her face if she was going to outright reject him. His entire body clenched as he felt her approach. Tentative lips reached his cheek in a gentle kiss that lasted but a moment yet felt like forever.
Arri leaned back in her chair. “You are forgiven.” She said with her haughty voice that made Alexander open his eyes and turn towards her. She was looking off into the corner, but he could tell her face was bright red.
Alexander decided to press on with his thoughts, to try to get to know the woman he was supposed to marry. “I was wondering… I was wondering if you would tell me about yourself.”
Turning to face him they finally made eye contact. Neither knew at the time, but at that moment their hearts fell in sync and their energy, for those who could see it, entwined on an otherworldly level. Arri nodded her head ever so slightly and Alexander began to ask questions and listen to her story. Back and forth they went talking about themselves and listening to the other. Laughs could be heard throughout the medical area and the halls outside. The entire night was filled with conversation and unnoticed by all, the energy that was in the room became almost as one.
Chapter 21:
Snow and wind billowed Alexander’s thick fur cloak on his back. His goggles given to him by Hugin held up well in the frigid storm. No snow stuck to them and they aided his sight in the flurry coming down. Along with his cloak and goggles he wore thick fur leathered pants and a tunic along with his military boots. With this he wore a special green mask, much like that a surgeon would wear back on earth, but this one protected him so his lungs did not freeze. Another good use of energy he thought.
He looked up at the enormous glacier that the Craxi were working on. As his gaze drifted along he noticed it had obvious been used as a source of water before. Step like areas were carved out of it were previous visitors had carved their ice bricks. It was a beautiful sight, but very imposing he thought.
Alexander crossed his arms and clenched them to his chest. He had never been so cold in his life. Luckily the animal, whose name he could not pronounce, that died to give him his fur clothes, was built for such temperatures and managed to keep most of the cold out. Letting his mind wander to the previous night spent talking with Arri he could not help but smile beneath his mask. She had left when morning came as Valkyries became a common sight in the medical area and he had not seen her in the long hours before he was cleared for his current mission. In his hear he could feel the need to see her again, to talk with her more.
And yet here he stood in knee deep snow feeling utterly useless. He had come on this trip to the surface thinking he would be of some help to the Craxi. Instead he got stuck with sentry duty due to his small stature. Having been told that there were indigenous creatures on this moon that could tear apart even a Craxi warrior with ease made him keep his head on a swivel. Still, even with that threat abound, he felt he should be aiding them with retrieval of ice bricks for melting and purification.
Munin, the complete overseer of this trip, had advised against his help, however. The Craxi, being so enormous, would easily walk through the snow and drag giant pieces of ice back to the transports, but he, being smaller, would just get in the way.
Lost in thought Alexander did not see nor hear the complete white creature lurking behind him. It blended in with the downfall of snow but kept low increasing its stealth. It was a master hunter on this distant snow and ice-covered moon.
Instinct more than anything saved Alexander’s life. Dropping face down into the deep snow right as a paw the size of which showed clearly how huge the beast was, shot by where he had been standing. Snow flew in an arc into the air before falling down in almost a mist temporarily blinding him as he came up into a crouch, axe and shield in hand.
Alexander stood up slack jawed as the snow cleared. In front of him stood a two-story tall wolf with a vicious snarl on its face giving a glimpse at the gigantic razor-sharp teeth.
At that moment Alexander felt a hand on his shoulder. Raixo stood tall next to him eyeing the great behemoth with no fear. It almost seemed as if he were excited “We were given the honorable duty of holding this half-pint off while the others load the rest of the ice,” He seemed almost full of pride.
“Oh well isn’t that wonderful,” Alexander said sarcastically. “How do you intend to stop this thing?”
“Well I was planning on punching it in the face.” Raixo said completely straight faced.
“Of course you were.”
It was then the beast lunged at them with a blood chilling roar. They could feel the wind rush by as it l
unged past them barely missing them both. The wind and strikes of the beast cleared the entire area of snow sending it flying into their air in a mist that fell back down. Now Alexander felt more confident with sure footing at least, but the snow that flew into the air blanketed the beast, furthering its ability to side.
Barely he saw the wolf, and seeing its attention was mainly on him, Alexander knew he needed to keep it to gain an opening for Raixo. Forming a whip out of his brace, he swung it at the beast with a crack. At first the wolf recoiled at the noise, but then it was back on the offensive. Great job pissing it off more, Alexander thought to himself.
Finally feeling it cornered Alexander the wolf raised its giant paw to bring it down right on top of him. At first the sight was so overwhelming Alexander almost froze completely. At the last moment he raised his whip and straightened it into a lance jabbing straight at the paw.
The entire area was filled with a howl of agony from the wolf. Alexander’s lance had bit deeply into the meat of its paw and blood poured from the wound. The wolf tore back its paw from the offending item and danced backwards, right into the trap Raixo had been planning.
Raixo covered his legs in the liquid metal and leapt into the air using the boosted strength from his suit and energy. It was a move not normally used, or even thought of, by the Craxi who preferred to charge straight at the enemy rather than use tricks. This trickery he was using must have rubbed off on him from spending too much time with humans he thought.
With the force of his jump it brought Raixo straight onto the back of the wolf. As he expected the great beast immediately attempted to buck him off, but Raixo held fast onto tufts of hair and began to slowly make his way forward grabbing handfuls of hair and using sheer strength to move himself.
Alexander looked on as his friend held fast onto the giant. It became almost like a rodeo. Laughing inwardly to himself for a moment, he decided it would be best to help out. He formed two ropes like the ones he used to stop the missiles and wrapped them around the wolf’s front paws. This was as far as his plan went however and soon he too was being dragged round by the bucking wolf.