Eyuul frowned as Jenn leaned against a rock, wheezing. Eyuul glanced up at the sky. It was barely past noon and she was already exhausted. This was not a good sign. They still had another four days of travel ahead of them before they’d be among the safety of his clan. He placed a firm hand on her shoulder, and she turned to look at him, sweat pouring down her face.
“Don’t say it,” she muttered.
“It must be done. Jenn, you are too exhausted to even make it through another full day of travel. You haven’t recovered enough. We must detour to shelter, just for a few days until you have regained your strength.”
She turned to flop against the rock, moisture streaming from her eyes, dripping down to mingle with the beads of sweat. In the days since he first saw her, the sun had darkened her face from deep gold to a dark bronze not unlike his own coloring, but even still her cheeks were dark with a flush of fatigue.
“Those women are counting on me,” she whispered, her voice ragged from emotion.
Eyuul inclined his head in acknowledgment. “They are. And we will not abandon them. Just give yourself a day or two of respite, Jenn, away from the threat of the shoyla where you can truly rest in a comfortable nest, and we will continue on. I vow it.”
Her ever-changing eyes, appearing a brilliant green now, narrowed on him as if weighing his word. Finally, she nodded.
“Just how far away are we?”
“Not far. The hunter’s shelter is a little more than a full day’s journey on the ground at our current pace. If you allow me to carry you, we can arrive before sundown.”
She grimaced, clearly not thrilled with the idea, but pushed herself up from the rock and stepped toward him. Her arms and legs immediately wrapped around him the moment he had her in his arms.
She cleared her throat. “How much further do we have to go?”
He squinted into the distance, looking for familiar landmarks. An outcropping of twisted rock that resembled a length of tail was easily visible.
“We are nearly there,” he reassured her.
She shivered and pressed herself closer to him.
“Let’s hurry, then. I’m not ashamed to admit that I’m afraid. The Agraak still scare me, Eyuul. I don’t want to be afraid of them. I hate that I am, but some part of me is there, on Agraadax. Probably will be until I am finally free of them.”
“There is no shame in being afraid,” he said.
She only tightened her grip as he made his way over the ground. In little time, he’d passed by the twisted tail rock and followed the rough ridge down toward the crevice where a group of hunters had burrowed a simple shelter. Although elated that he’d arrived safely, a knot of anxiety formed in his gut. His clan had battled the Kampi when they’d come and attempted to seize Reggie. One danger had passed, and just one revolution later danger was coming into their territory again.
The Matriarch wasn’t going to be happy about it.
As he slid between the rocks that hid the entrance, Eyuul debated keeping Jenn in the mountains until he could confront the Agraak himself. The idea had certain merits until he considered that it wouldn’t prevent an Agraak bounty hunter from inflicting cruelty upon his clan. Staying away didn’t guarantee that his clan would remain unscathed, especially without being forewarned of the danger.
There was also the matter of needing to communicate with the Intergalactic Council as soon as possible that could not be ignored. If the Agraak were afraid of an information leak, who knew what they might be motivated to do? Jenn would never forgive herself or him if something happened to the human females on Agraadax. He didn’t think he would be able to forgive himself, either.
Not bothering to light the lamps in the humble nest, he slid into the depths of the sad excuse for a nest proper. Although he curled his lip at the humble cushions which had only accumulated dust since the nest had last been used, Jenn slid out of his arms into the pile with a grateful sigh. He turned, relying on memory to feel his way around, and lit a single sconce on the wall so they would not be in complete darkness. The low light did nothing to improve matters. The dull cushions were sparse, meant only to give a simple comfort to the hunters who would sleep there when caught out on the mountain. They did not look inviting, yet Jenn draped herself over them without any care toward their sorry state.
“I’m afraid this isn’t much better than my nest was. If anything, it is considerably worse,” he said.
Her teeth flashed as her face lit up with an amused, even if exhausted, smile.
“It beats sleeping in a tree. Don’t worry about it, Eyuul. I’m not expecting a resort. This works just fine. Come, lie down with me and get some rest. We will worry about everything else tomorrow.”
Not needing to be asked twice, he removed his vest and belt and sank down into the cushions beside her, groaning as his back and tail stretched. To his surprise, he felt Jenn run her hands over the muscles of his back. He gently trapped one of her hands beneath his.
“You need to rest, Jenn.”
“I am resting.” Her voice was muffled against one of their cushions as her hand trailed over his back before going lax. Her palm was flattened on the small of his back, her warm body pressed closed against him.
With a yawn, he lifted the end of his tail and slipped it around her. Her arms circled around the end of it, cuddling it close to her as they both drifted into contented sleep.
Eyuul woke feeling an intense burning heat against him. Turning toward the source, he frowned and roused himself when he realized it was coming from Jenn. He reached forward and brushed unusually damp coils of hair out of his female’s face. Her skin was darkly flushed like it had been the day before, except this time the moisture coating her face was accumulating in a film. His worst fears were realized: Jenn was sick, her body raging with fever.
Gently turning her over, he pulled away the bandage and winced at the sight of the angry, swollen cut seeping with yellow pus. Her wound was infected. Eyuul pulled himself out from around the female to retrieve the water skin. That alone wasn’t going to be enough. She needed heat applied to her injury to help drain the infection as well as cool water to bring down her fever.
Searching through the nest, he found a small bladder used to make compresses for wounded hunters and several squares of cloth. Rinsing them free of dirt and dust, he draped them over the edge of a large pot while he turned to retrieve two large jugs. He hated to leave her alone while she was ill, but there wasn’t nothing he could do to help her without water. With one jug in each arm, he pushed his way through the entrance and made his way down to a nearby stream.
The hunters who’d picked the location were wise in their selection. Far enough down the mountain to be safe from shoyla yet close enough to a stream to serve their basic needs. Because of their foresight, Eyuul was able to quickly fill both jugs and return to the nest.
Once inside, he poured a small amount in a pot hanging on a hook before rotating the arm of the hook to extend over the fire. As it heated, he returned to Jenn’s side. Pouring a small amount of water into the cloth, he bathed her face and chest with the water. He repeated the process again, only stopping to return to the fire and pour a portion of the hot water into the bladder, which he tied shut and wrapped in another cloth.
Applying the compress to her wound, Eyuul returned to bathing her. He continued the process intermittently throughout the day, at other times making tea from herbs kept for emergencies within the shelter. This he gave to her in small sips every few hours as her fever raged. He also made a broth from dried provisions, which she thankfully took without any problems.
He didn’t leave her side, bathing her and caring for her needs only to pause for brief periods of rest on the cushions beside her. He was helpless to do more, yet he willed her to survive. She’d survived much; she would survive this.
THE ASHIER REMOVED a spike from his belt and whipped it in one swift motion, elongating it into a metal spear. He poked through this pile of pillows with the end as the Arob
i milled around through the underground hovel. He curled his lip. Vori were savage creatures, little better than beasts despite sharing the same star system with Agraadax. It disgusted him. It was a shame that Vora and the Vori themselves were both so deadly to deal with, else the ruling house of Agraadax would have issued orders to conquer them long ago. Even being here, the Ashier, superior among those of his caste, was taking a risk and operating on borrowed time before the clans noticed his presence.
The female had been there. The Arobi had detected her scent concentrated there as if she’d spent a length of time huddled there among the pillows. Unfortunately, she was long gone, leaving no clue other than a splatter of Vori blood in her wake. Clearly, she’d injured whoever dwelled there. She was obviously more resourceful than he gave her credit for.
Dismissing the Arobi with a sharp command, the Ashier grinned to himself. He was enjoying this hunt. It was going to be a shame when it ended. He would have to take a trophy to commemorate the occasion.
Chapter 14
Jenn sipped the medicinal tea that Eyuul had given her and resisted the urge to throw it back up. She should have known when he gave her the cup that it would be foul. The minute he told her that it was a concoction that hunters used to boost their energy and relieve pain, it should have set off a huge warning signal in her head. But like an idiot, she’d taken a deep sip without a second thought and nearly gagged.
Nothing medicinal ever tasted good. Even the stuff for children, advertised as fruit-flavored, was nothing short of torture to swallow. If anything, the herbal blend he had her drinking was ten times worse and tasted like what she assumed steeped sweaty gym socks would. She couldn’t even attempt to pour it out on the sly because he was settled on the cushions, watching her like a hawk.
Damn persistent male.
Jenn had spent much of her day resting. It felt like the first bit of genuine deep, restful sleep that she’d gotten since arriving on Vora. Funny thing, being able to curl up without worrying about bizarre leeches, giant spiders, or falling from a tree was conducive to a good night’s rest. Who knew? Her lips quirked with amusement at her train of thought. At least she was no longer nodding off at the drop of a hat.
Although she’d been bad off when they arrived at the nest, she hadn’t realized just how sick she was. It was not until she’d awoken to see a very concerned Eyuul hovering over her, bathing her face with a cool, damp cloth, that she found out she’d had a raging fever for two days. Her wound, despite Eyuul’s cautious care of it through the jungle, had become infected. It had been something he warned her could happen, but something they both hoped to avoid. While she lay unconscious, Eyuul had fed her medicine and thin broth, both of which he continued to ply on her after she’d woken before allowing her to have small bites of solid food. It took daily doses of Eyuul’s obnoxious tonic to begin to work its magic on her.
Not that it made it taste any better.
Looking at him over the rim of her cup, she flashed him a wide smile, which he returned, showing off his impressive set of fangs.
“This medicine is really... umm... Do you think I can have some water?”
His eyes sharpened and his smile turned smug. “Do you think I am newly hatched? I know it is awful, just as I know the minute that I turn away you will attempt to dump it out. Every young hunter has done such at least once,” he said with a laugh. “However, because I know it is good for you, I will do as my elders did and keep my eyes on you until you drink every drop.”
“Your elders were sadists, huh?” she observed wryly.
“When you are out in the jungles, you must do what is necessary to improve your health quickly. This situation, I think, is no different. We consider it being... practical.”
“You do realize I hate when your argument makes sense. All right. Let’s just get this over with.”
Jenn made a face at her cup. Holding her breath with the hope that not being able to smell it would reduce the horrible taste, she tipped the cup back and chugged. The last swallow made her gag, and she pushed her tongue out as if the flavor would miraculously disperse without the offending organ in her mouth. She closed her mouth, grimaced, and handed the cup back to the ridiculously happy Vori.
“Well, at least you didn’t dose me like a puppy,” she muttered.
“How is that?”
“I mean, you didn’t pour it down my throat and give me a choice between swallowing and drowning.”
“Ah.” He nodded wisely, his eyes twinkling despite his somber expression. “That would have been the next step utilized by the elders for the least cooperative of young hunters. You still had about ten minutes to decide on your own.”
Jenn scowled. “I hope you’re joking.”
A playful grin appeared on his face. “Maybe.”
A reluctant chuckle escaped her. Despite being large enough to stop her heart with fear when she first saw him, and possessing an annoying alpha male’s bossy attitude, he really was adorable. She slanted him a curious look.
“How is it that you’re not mated already?”
His smile dropped and the tip of his tail twitched with an irritated snap. The move not too long ago would have had her diving for cover. That she could sit beside him at that moment, largely unfazed, buoyed her spirit. She’d been so afraid that after her time with the Agraak, she would never be able to be around another male without constantly flinching and breaking out into cold sweats. She’d accomplished so much healing when she was forced to take care of herself and confront her own weaknesses and began to learn to trust again due to Eyuul’s patience.
Eyuul had studied her body language, picking up his cues from her, and as time passed, his strength reassured her rather than frightened her as he demonstrated over and over that she could trust him. The same male who was so protective of her that he threatened to kill anyone who hurt her. It was barbaric. It was reassuring. And now she went and put her foot in her mouth.
“I’m sorry. If you’d rather not talk about it, I’d understand.”
“No, it’s not that. It is hardly a secret,” he said with a strained smile. “I don’t have mate because I am considered unnatural.”
“What, do you have two cocks or something?” she joked.
“Of course, but so do all Vori.”
She nearly swallowed her tongue before her mouth shot open. “Excuse me?”
A confused frowned flitted across his face. “If you would like, I can show you.” His hand dropped to a pocket of flesh below his belly where she could see a noticeable slit. He obviously had internally-contained sexual organs. She wasn’t quite ready for that eyeful.
Jenn snapped her hand up. “No, no. That’s quite all right. So, why are you considered unnatural?”
“I should start by explaining Vori society. From what I understand, human society is different from that of the Vori. Our society is matriarchal. Families are organized into clans, and each clan is led by a female who is the strongest. All the clans are organized into matriarchies on their respective continent lead by a great Matriarch, as I have mentioned before.”
“Okay, that doesn’t sound too odd. There’s some myth about matriarchal societies among humans, and there are plenty that are matrilineal, where the family extends from the female line.”
“On Vora, our society had evolved to where each nest has two or more nestmates who form a family unit with a single dominant female. Males are expected to adhere to this without complaint. We are taught from youth that our purpose is to attract a mate or join an existing nest. We are to breed with her to produce hatchlings and are responsible for guarding the nest from predators.”
“Wow, that’s definitely different. I mean, there’s at least one culture on Earth that I recall hearing of in passing in which a single wife would be shared among a family of brothers. It’s not unheard of, though, for one man would have to number of wives, even if it’s not what most humans would consider common.”
He looked confused. “How can one male prot
ect and care for all several females and young ones alone?”
“I gather they all share in the work together,” she said. “I’m not entirely sure about the logistics since it’s not a lifestyle that ever attracted me, but many people seem to make it work. Love is love, after all.”
He nodded. “Love is love. Unfortunately, Vori are not so accepting of differences. Males who have difficulty in sharing, who cannot abide being part of a nest with other males, are ostracized. We are considered damaged, against what the gods designed for the Vori. To some of the more extreme, we are an offense to the Mother of Nests who was first to take the sentinel Fathers as her own to create life on our world. No female will tolerate a male who cannot share her affections with another male.”
“Your clan treats you like shit because you refuse to get down with a female who’s with other guys?”
A small smile twisted his lips. “Our biology is a bit more complicated than that. It is not just a matter of being in the same nest, which is bad enough. Males have an anterior barb lower in our tails which acts as a plug. The first among the males penetrates the barb pouch of the other male, their tails twisting together around the female in a breeding lock. It stimulates a release of pheromones that not only increases the pleasure of the female but also allows us to produce our seed to ejaculate.”
Jenn didn’t realize her mouth had dropped open until he chuckled warmly and tapped her jaw with the tip of one of his claws. She snapped it shut and flushed, but she couldn’t seem to stop the next question that danced on the tip of her tongue.
“Are you unable to reproduce then since you’re a solo kind of guy?”
Eyuul laughed. “There are other ways to stimulate the barb, Jenn.”
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