Steven pulled up the video of his parents. He remembered what Jacob had done and split the stream into two videos. Sirel giggled. "You're seeing through their eyes."
Steven nodded, "Jacob divulged that to me." Sirel looked at him then back at the video.
"Your father is my best friend. Did you know that?" Sirel looked at Steven. He shook his head. Sirel looked at the video. "I miss them," the Faerie said, wistful.
"I used to. Now, it's strange." Steven looked at Sirel. "I used to be desperate to find my parents. But I have my family here. Sally and Jonah are my parents, Asherah my... life-mate and you my extended family." He looked back at the video. "I see them and know they're my biological parents and I do want to find them. But the consuming obsession isn't there anymore."
"Aw, that's sweet. I'm part of your extended family." Sirel kissed him on the cheek and giggled. Steven rubbed his cheek, feeling a little nick from her kiss. Faeries apparently nibbled when they kissed.
"Second cousin three times removed," Steven said, keeping a serious face.
Sirel grinned and poked the back of his head, giving him a tiny charge that made his hair stand up straight. He patted it down and looked around at her, amused. She got serious, however. "But they're still alive. That means the Sadari have a use for them." She looked at the video. "We really do need to find them."
The meadow was off limits thanks to the buildup of the Cooperative Defense Forces. Steven sighed. He would have liked to return there and let the other world dominate again. Lay back in lush foliage and smell the flowers, even in the late summer. There on Endard the flowers were always blooming. And Steven loved to watch Asherah dance around singing. He felt her giggle as he remembered that.
Looking up, Steven saw her still sitting face to face with him in their pasture, but falling over. A bear had come over and was trying to nuzzle her, pushing her over. She giggled again and scratched behind the bear's ears.
"Hey, I'm drawing here!" Steven waved the bear off. "Codependent bear," Steven grumbled, then looked at Asherah and grinned. She straightened her top and sat up straight again, looking at him. Her eyes still stirred up excitement in him as he looked at her. It was like she didn't have to say a word. Just look at him.
He picked up his pencil again and resumed drawing Asherah. Steven hadn't picked up a sketchbook seriously in years. Since the time he was convinced Asherah didn't exist. After that, drawing just hurt too much. But she was back now and real and one of her favorite things to do was to sit there while Steven drew her. He felt her delight in his attention and smiled. Sharing each others emotions and thoughts took a fair bit of adjustment. But he couldn't imagine it any other way. It was completely alien to him but at the same time so perfectly natural. For some, the mystery held great appeal. For him, it was the intimacy.
Steven looked back at her and she smiled sweetly, playing with the flower petals in her hair. He put his sketch pad down and leaned forward, kissing her passionately. He had no idea what the future held for them. But he knew they would face it together.
Chapter 31
He woke up in a meadow. Rolling over, he looked up and saw a tall dead snag towering overhead. The sun was just rising. Laurence tried to take a breath and winced at the sharp pain in his chest. He propped himself up on his elbow and looked around. He was back on Earth. He closed his eyes tight, trying to slow the spinning feeling he was getting. He was amazed to have actually made it back. For the longest time he thought he was going to be captured himself and he could only imagine what the aliens would have done to him.
It came back to Laurence slowly, the events that led to him being sent there. He was very surprised the meadow was where he was sent. Steven was furious. Deadly furious. He would have not blamed him if Steven sent him into a star or lake of lava. That he is alive told him a lot about Steven's character and what lines he won't cross.
He remembered the tremendous fight. Laurence had not had an extended bout of combat in a very long time, much less with an inexperienced boy. He was a whirlwind. He didn't hit hard, but he was next to impossible to hit and at the end his strikes did start carrying some force. His chest was testament to that. He recalled shooting the furry girl and Steven appearing to materialize over her, intercepting the dart. Laurence had never seen someone move so fast. The dart hit Steven and something weird happened. He got back up and attacked him. Not the usual reaction to the dart. The other furry guy died pretty quickly. The toxin was very fast acting. Steven's resistance to even the strongest sedatives should have been an indicator that darts would not be a good tool to use against him.
He coughed and winced again, both from the pain in his ribs and the burn on his neck. Did Steven do that? He felt his neck. It was blistered where Steven had grabbed him. He looked at his arm. More blisters and the hair was singed off. Laurence recalled the metal balls in Steven's shock collar melting. There was something very unexpectedly different with that kid, alien or not. Laurence really would have liked to have acquired that boy. Perhaps if he returns to Earth. Laurence will have to keep an eye out for him.
Standing up, Laurence took stock of the situation. He was beyond exhausted, beat up, and he had no idea where Steven was. It was safe to assume that he was still back on that planet. The planet. Laurence felt a thrill. He had to have been the first human to stand on an inhabited extraterrestrial planet ever. He really was there. Laurence closed his eyes remembering. He grabbed his phone and examined the photos he took. The images of the furry girl were still there, the cave and cliff and the jungle where Laurence had to drag and hide the body. He nearly filled the phone up to capacity. Between that and some rocks he had sequestered in various pockets and a few seeds he had grabbed as he rushed through the jungle, he had a good body of evidence to back up his claims. Proof. And now he was back.
Laurence had to find out how that worked. Traveling from one world to another instantly. Steven did not have any equipment. It was all him. Laurence was completely at a loss. No technology or big engines or fancy scientific toys. Just Steven. He arrived out of nowhere. Just appeared in front of him. He assumed the other furry woman appeared at the same time but was to the side and very quiet. Steven appeared with just the clothes he had on, then he made him appear here in this clearing the same way. Laurence would love to dissect that kid and see what made him tick. If one person could do it, Laurence was sure that others could be found that could do it as well.
He pulled out his baton. It still had caked blood on it and a few strands of hair from the furry woman. Laurence smiled. More proof he was there and a very good genetic sample. He didn't have Steven at the moment, but he wasn't completely empty handed. He may be in hot water with his boss for not coming in immediately, but Laurence figured that the samples, pictures, and genetic material he was bringing in would help make up for that. He grabbed his phone and hit his speed dial.
"I need extraction," Laurence said. He looked up at the sky and around him. It was a large meadow. However, he had no idea where he was. But the GPS in his phone would be good enough to pinpoint him.
"Laurence, we're down at the moment," the agent at the Washington base responded. "We don't have any helicopters to come pick you up."
His brows furrowed. "What? What happened?" The entire base being down was highly unusual. He would have said it would have been impossible. It was a tremendously vast complex with multiple levels, heavily armored, heavily armed, and equipped with an obnoxious level of redundancies.
"The base has been destroyed, sir. We were attacked. The aliens came to retrieve Steven," the agent said efficiently.
Laurence couldn't believe it and was too stunned to respond right away.
"Sir?" the agent said, making sure they didn't lose the connection.
"Let me speak to Jacob." Laurence rubbed his temples. This was not happening.
"Mr. Bradly is not available at the moment. He is at the infirmary."
"Is he hurt bad?" Laurence was not ready to break in a new commander.
"I'm not sure, sir. However, he is still in active command."
"Who attacked us?"
"We detected at least four aliens sir."
"Four aliens wiped out our base?" Laurence was incredulous. He would have figured that it would have taken an army.
"Any alien casualties?" At least that could present dissection opportunities.
"That's a negative, sir."
Laurence sighed. "Are there any agents in the field?" He sat down in the grass again, trying not to breathe too deeply.
"We have one coming in from the coast. The rest have been recalled."
"Have him swing my way on his way back then." He hung up. Jacob had ended up capturing Steven after all. Then aliens destroyed the base. He got up and started walking east. He had to get to a highway to wait for his ride, then figure out what the next step was. Being able to instantly travel to other worlds should probably rate at the top of that list.
Acknowledgments
My wife, who has stood beside me... okay, a little to the left... more... back... to the right... yeah... who has stood behind me all these years of marriage... ow... while bapping me on the head whenever I annoy her. She took it upon herself to edit my work because of her insatiable appetite for correcting me. I am pleased to have given her ample reason to... correct me. She is my best friend, my muse and an excellent motivator.
My children, Kenan and Noah, for tolerating me and all the hours I spend at the computer writing and insisting on a little bit of peace and quiet while they are playing their infernal games. I mean, I'm doing something important here. On my computer... in my fantasy world... Go clean your room!!!
My circle of childhood friends whose creativity helped shape mine over the years. You know who you are. Yeah... you. Don't hide...
My proof-readers and beta-readers... perhaps gamma-readers, theta-readers... a few omega-readers, and let us not forget the... ooh, pretty butterfly...
My Facebook friends who avidly hung on every word I wrote in my frequent updates about the stories I was writing. Because... you know... if they missed it, I'd just post it again. And again... and again...
My chickens who gave me such excellent input during my projects. Hey... don't laugh. I've caught my wife talking to them too. What a gossip...
The Aliens who consulted me and gave me good direction for the... totally... fictional story that I dreamed up all on my own and without any... Alien... help. Why isn't my backspace key working?
About the Author
I have been daydreaming my entire life, oftentimes to the consternation of my parents and teachers. I would frequently go off into my own worlds and get lost for hours on end. Sometimes I'd draw what I see, other times write it down. I've had the benefit of growing up with like-minded friends and we would often find ourselves creating wonderful and complex universes and stories together. Those are my best memories of childhood.
I am avidly interested in everything around me. How stuff is made, how nature works, social interactions, all of it. Hopefully, I have been able to do my lifetime of daydreaming, creativity and diverse interests justice in these books that I am writing.
For updates on my creative projects, please visit my website and Facebook page here:
http://www.mjv.com/
https://www.facebook.com/MichaelJVanecek
Crow - The Awakening Page 67