by Jaide Fox
He led her down a large tiled hall to the stairs, which wound down floor after floor. She hadn’t paid it as much attention as she’d thought, but they were five floors from ground level. At the mouth of the staircase, the room opened into a grand gallery, with ceilings that reached to the second level. Looking up, she could see balconies that hung above the gallery, allowing the occupants to gaze down below.
Inside the gallery were fountains that stood in the center, bubbling with water lighted from within. The lights alternated through a rainbow of colors, looking beautiful and eye-catching. Shrubs and exotic flowers dotted the edges of the room, with windows reaching high to allow sunlight to penetrate the perimeter of the room.
Dezec’s hand on the small of her back as he led her through the interior gardens felt electrifying to her flesh. An excitement to see something new kept her walking in pace with him. They traveled through the hall, following others as they made their way to the dining hall.
In the dining hall, long tables and benches stretched the length of the room. Hundreds of soldiers and some couples lined the tables. Large serving dishes were set on the tables, with plates, tableware, and glasses marking dining seats.
At the head of the hall was a raised area where the king sat with his entourage. Beside him, Adrienne could see her sister, Ebony. Her heart leaped and she wanted to run across the space and give her a hug. She’d missed her so bad!
Dezec caught her arm, as if sensing the excitement in her. “We cannot approach the king and his consort without permission. Have patience. I will gain audience in a few days,” he said, rubbing her arm and looking at her warmly.
She didn’t know why, but she trusted him. He had to know she hated being alone in this world. Family meant everything to her. “All right. I can wait a little longer.”
Adrienne looked at the center, meeting her sister’s eyes. Ebony waved frantically, smiling and mouthing I love you. Adrienne waved back and blew her kisses. It would have to suffice for now. Her stomach knotted with disappointment. If she wasn’t so hungry, she probably would have lost her appetite, but Dezec’s reassurance calmed her fears just a little.
He guided her to a table and they sat on the bench, fixing themselves plates of food as the food was passed within their circle. Adrienne enjoyed the fresh roasted vegetables and meats. Potato like chunks cooked with a deep purple veg that tasted a lot like a carrot but earthier. The meat came off of something unfamiliar, but it tasted and looked like chicken so she figured it was some kind of fowl.
Dezec ate heartily, finishing two plates before he groaned and rubbed his belly.
“You probably ate too much and can’t take me shopping, right?” She gave him a look.
“A walk is just what I need. If you’re finished, we can go,” he said. She nodded and he helped her to her feet.
Guiding her back out, they went through the grand hall and through an entrance that led to the outside. Adrienne was surprised to see the doors remained unlocked, but with so many occupants, she shouldn’t have been too surprised. Security would be a nightmare.
The setting sun left the sky in a purple haze as the moon rose. The streets were lit with soft, white streetlights. The streets were wide to accommodate large crowds, unpaved. She looked at the dirt collecting between her toes and grimaced. She hated the feeling of sand on her feet.
Dezec caught her expression and smiled. He bent his arm, offering it to her. “Most commoners don’t wear shoes here unless they have to. It never occurred to me that you would want some. We will go to the clothier first.”
She looped her hand through the nook of his arm and nodded, keeping his pace and enjoying the warm of his bare skin. If she didn’t watch herself, she might get used to being a couple with him. It was dangerous for her to get too comfortable, not when she was so unsure of her future. As nice as his planet and city seemed to be—it wasn’t home for her and probably never would be. She hated to admit it, but she missed the noise and bustle of an Earth city, and wondered why the hell she would miss cars and blaring horns. Maybe it was because that was what she’d known her whole life?
He led her to a short, squat building, then opened the door and walked inside. The interior was muted, with mannequins modeling different styles of clothing. Adrienne didn’t see any racks of clothes, however.
A man greeted them, speaking their native tongue. Dezec spoke to him and the man looked apologetic.
“Good evening,” the store owner said. “What can I do for you today?”
“My lady is in need of clothing and shoes. She needs to be measured and garments made at the earliest opportunity.”
He nodded and led her to a stand in the center of mirrors. He pulled out a tape and began marking down her measurements. Her feet, he placed on a foam block which sank in with the pressure of her weight and formed a perfect imprint of her foot. She’d never had custom designed clothing, just for her, before. Despite the fact that she couldn’t look at rows of dresses, pants, and shirts, she liked the idea of clothes designed with just her in mind. Her small waist and wide hips had always made it difficult to find clothes that fit her properly. That wouldn’t be an issue here.
After selecting several different designs of pants, bodysuits, and dress, they were informed their order would be ready in two days. Dezez paid with a small, metallic card she assumed was like a credit card. Then they left to go to what he called a potion shop.
Not having a drug store or Walmart kind of baffled Adrienne. She was so used to having stores with products ready for purchase. This way of life that they maintained was almost medieval, but she could see that not having stock prevented them from making as much waste. Perhaps if her own world had adopted a similar strategy, they wouldn’t be in the trouble they were in with a faltering environment and mountains of garbage everywhere. The disposable era had all but destroyed so much of Earth.
Adrienne shook her head at her musings.
“What are you thinking about?” he asked her as they walked the nearly empty streets.
“My home world.”
“You miss it?”
“Yes. Chalcedon is as different from Earth as you are from me. I’m not sure I could get used to it.”
He rubbed her hand where it rested on his arm. “You can, if you allow it. We are not so different. I’ll admit, I don’t know as much about your culture as I should, but we have many fine things here, many entertainments. As trust grows, so too can your freedom.”
She thought she was doing a pretty damn good idea of getting his defenses down. Hell, she’d damn near obliterated hers, and she was supposed to be keeping a clear head on her shoulders. She hated to admit that a good sexual experience had diminished her drive to escape.
Adrienne felt like a bit of a pushover. Maybe she was….
The “potion” store had a purple sign over the door and some of their strange writing. She recalled it from the tablet she’d studied and vowed to return to it tomorrow. She needed to know more about them if she was going to continue on her mission. Ebony was counting on her.
The owner, an older woman, greeted them warmly as they walked inside and shut the door to the tinkle of bells. Adrienne had thought there weren’t any of the Heliodryad women left, but apparently not. The elders were still there.
Inside, the scent of a myriad of perfumes greeted her nose, many scents she didn’t recognize. Floral scents pervaded her nostrils, but also woodsy smells, something that smelled like the beach, and other indistinguishable scents she’d never make out. She immediately fell in love with the store and the colored, jeweled glass vials and jars lining shelves.
The older woman watched Adrienne with a smile. She was much taller than her, as tall as Dezec.
He must think I’m practically a midget, she thought, picking up a vial of perfume that smelled heavenly. “Mmmm,” she said.
Dezec took the bottle and sniffed it. “We’ll take this. Also, we need so
mething to tame her hair. I enjoy its wildness, but she does not. Can you explain, Adrienne?” Dezec said, watching her with a twinkle in his eye.
With the owner’s attention, Adrienne had the woman touch her hair. “It gets frizzy with the humidity. I need something that will keep the curls down, but not so heavy that my hair gets greasy and nothing that will dry it out. I have very sensitive skin that reacts to strong scents, also.”
The woman combed through her hair, examining the texture before finally moving to a counter to mix different combinations of oils with a mortar and pestle. She added some kind of thickener to give it body, then poured the concoction into a glass jar. Screwing the lid on, she offered it to Adrienne.
“See if this works for you when next you wash your hair. If it does not fill the job, bring it back and I will try another variation.”
Adrienne smiled. “Thank you. I hope it does.” She hadn’t gone a day in her life without adding something to her hair. She’d felt naked without all her styling products and makeup. The wild, untamed curls made her feel very self-conscious about herself.
Dezec paid the woman and they made their way back to their housing. The walk, rather than tiring her out, had left Adrienne energized. As much as she missed her car, the closeness of the city reminded her of New York, and she rather liked being able to walk anywhere and find something interesting. It certainly helped with her physical being, and the stroll was invigorating.
Back in the room, Adrienne made room for her things on the bathroom shelf. Before she could do much more, Dezec enveloped her from behind, kissing her neck with soft warm kisses. He initiated lovemaking, making her feel sexy and desirable. Figuring what the hell, she gave in to him, enjoying herself more each time he touched her.
She was playing a dangerous game for both of them. She knew this couldn’t last.
Chapter Eight
The next day passed and then another and another, with no word on when Dezec would gain audience with the king.
Dezec brought her the clothes and shoes they’d had made for her, as well as new perfumes and pretty necklaces and other jewelry. She’d appreciated his gifts, and enjoyed seeing jewels on her ears and around her neck, but they were only distractions for her. She didn’t want to be kept prisoner inside a small room, just waiting for him to arrive home each day.
She was used to having work to do. Being confined didn’t set well with her, no matter how nice the jail or how handsome and thoughtful her jailor.
When her boredom threatened her sanity, he loaded reading material from Earth on his tablet for her to entertain herself with while he was gone. That helped alleviate the pressure somewhat, but in the back of her mind, her sister lingered. How was she doing? Did Ebony worry about her as much as she did?
As much as she was fond of his strange sense of humor and generous nature, it wasn’t enough to leave her satisfied with her surroundings.
Adrienne was growing impatient, and she had the strong feeling that one or the other of them was deliberately keeping her away from her sister, for reasons unknown. Even if she was trapped here forever, she didn’t want to go the rest of her life without contact from Ebony. It would kill her soul to know they were in the same building but might as well be light years apart.
Attempting to get her mind off the situation, Dezec offered to take her to the Zhala, dragon, stables on his one day off when he didn’t have duties to perform. It was an opportunity that Adrienne couldn’t refuse.
The walk was a long one. On the way, Adrienne paid attention to her surroundings, looking for ways to get out of the city should the need or opportunity arise. A sewer or drainage system ran beneath the city, if the evenly pace grates were any indication, and given the fact that many civilizations on Earth had something similar, she felt her assessment was fairly accurate. The drainage could be an exit beyond.
“Do the seasons ever change here?” she asked him as they walked.
He thought about it a moment. “In other parts of the world. Our people chose this area for their capitol city because its temperature remains constant due to its altitude and closeness to the sea. The sun sets over a vast ocean. Perhaps you can see it one day. If you’re feeling brave, we can fly there.”
Adrienne wasn’t so sure about that. “Maybe.” She’d reserve judgment until she saw what these ‘dragon’ looked like.
The stables were to the South of the city, still surrounded by the great, impregnable wall that trapped them all inside and protected them from invaders. She didn’t know what she’d really expected when he’d offered, but she hadn’t quite expected what she did find. Trampled grasses marked where the great beasts routinely walked. A large building that reminded her forcibly of an open air arena stood marking the rear of the city.
“A few times each year, we hold Zhala games and championships, to see who is the most skilled rider and whose Zhala is best trained,” he said, guiding her inside the absolutely huge double doors that stood open. That the creatures had freedom to move about as they wished made her feel a little easier. They couldn’t be that bad if they were allowed to roam.
“Our dragons eat mostly fruit to fuel their best weapon: their breath.”
“Oh? Do they breathe fire?” she asked, hanging behind him as they walked into the arena/stable. Seats stepped up to the very edge of the arena, up to the top on three sides. The last was obviously an area for the creatures to have room to move and settle.
Dezec laughed at her. “That’s impossible. No creature on our planet can breathe fire. No, the acid they consume in their diet is converted into a stomach acid that they can spew upon and melt their victims. It’s quite gruesome to behold.”
Adrienne made a face, wrinkling her nose. “That sounds disgusting.”
He nodded. “Not as much as you’d think.”
“They must smell horrible. Look horrible.”
“You tell me. There’s Bane now. He is my mount.”
From the rear of the building a great creature loped up to greet them. It had a long neck and slender head with feathers running along its head and neck, flowing to two great wings that were folded at its back. His tail was a similar length to his neck, and his body was the size of a small elephant but not nearly as wide. Blunt talons marked its feet, and its mouth looked more like a beak than a lizard’s snout. It didn’t have teeth either and no horns. The creature looked like a combination of bird and dinosaur.
She didn’t notice anything obviously offensive about the animal. Adrienne was immediately enchanted by the pale blue creature as it hung its head for Dezec to ruffle the feathers on his head. “He’s gentle unless you’re an enemy. Here, touch his head. He won’t bite you.”
Adrienne tentatively lifted her hand, hoping he didn’t sense fear in her. Bane seemed to enjoy her fingers scratching his head, similarly sized to a horse’s. The iridescent feathers were as soft as down. “He’s so soft.”
“We’ve assumed it’s their diet of fruit and vegetables that keep them this way. If you lean close, they smell of berries.”
She gave him a look and sniffed. It did! “Weird. Not nearly as revolting as I thought it would be.”
He chuckled and walked to an area with saddles hanging against the wall. They were under the bleachers in this position, able to see the sky only if craning a head. The entire underside of the seating housed the Zhala’s, so they weren’t completely exposed to the elements.
“Would you like to ride him with me? He hasn’t had a chance to fly in several days, and Bane needs his exercise.”
Adrienne watched him bring a massive black saddle back. He began strapping it to Bane’s back, tightening the straps beneath the belly. “I don’t know.”
Finished, he swung a leg up and sat atop the dragon. He leaned over, extending a hand. “Trust me,” he said.
For some reason, she did. She accepted his hand, surprised when he lifted her effortlessly off the ground and deposited
her in front of him. He wrapped his warm arms around her, and Bane launched into the air. The liftoff, the feel of powerful muscles moving and flexing, made her stomach drop. She gasped as the ground fell away and they took to the sky.
“Oh my god,” she screamed, taking a death grip on Dezec’s arms, hoping this wasn’t the day that she died. She’d never been very good at flying, and that had been in a plane, not on top of a dragon.
Dezec guided Bane lower, beneath the cloud cover, and when Adrienne felt Dezec’s hand rubbing her stomach in a comforting manner, she dared to open her tightly squeezed eyes to look out at her surroundings.
As far as the eye could see were forests in varying shades of green and blue. The sun high overhead made the sky appear that much bluer, and to the west, she could see the ocean’s water sparkling like diamonds with reflective light.
“It’s beautiful,” she shouted above the wind roaring in her ears.
“I am glad I could share this with you,” he said into her ear.
She smiled, enjoying the ride and the feel of his strong arms. She was getting used to having him around, but she knew it was crazy to think this felt right.
Bane coasted, his wings making long sweeping strides with the wind. Her hair whipped around her shoulders into Dezec’s face. He spat her hair out of his mouth, laughing when she accused him of eating her hair.
“That clearing is where I first met you,” he said, pointing to the woods along the ridge of ocean. The trees rustled in the ocean breeze, bent from years of unending breezes bending their branches. It was so far out of the city, she’d never make her way back there, and what for? They had no way for her to get back to Earth. She’d nearly resigned herself to the fact that she would be an alien captive for the rest of her life.
She just needed to make sure her sister was okay. She could be patient a little while longer.