by Kylie Gold
Dracon looked over my face as if to analyze whether or not I was being serious. His eyes lingered on mine, “Well, if you say so, then alright. This way,” he began to walk into the jungle right behind the hut we were walking by.
I watched my footing, the jungle being completely covered in vegetation and giant roots. Once we were a little way into the jungle, I felt a hand brush against the bare skin of my bottom. My eyes immediately went to Dracon, who wore a smug smirk on his face. “Hey now, this is about hunting, not playing grab-ass,” I tutted him in a teasing way.
“Grabbing ass is a game? I want to play,” Dracon smirked, his hand giving a light squeeze then. My eyes looked around for anyone watching, which there wasn’t, before turning to him and reaching to grab his face. Pulling him down, I gave him a sweet, long kiss; his hand traveling up to the small of my back to pull me closer.
I pulled away from the kiss, looking up into his lilac eyes which were burning down into my eyes. “I’m serious, Dracon. I do want to show my appreciation for the tribe.”
He looked at me with a perplexed look, still holding me to him, before shrugging and dropping his hand from my back, “Alright then. Let’s go hunting.” As he began to lead the way deeper into the jungle, I stole another glance up to him to see a small, content smile on his face. What was he smiling about?
Ugh, I had forgotten briefly just how humid the jungle was there. It felt like we were walking through water, but being left sticky and sweaty. The jungle was absolutely beautiful. I had never seen it in the daylight until then. It had a splendid array of blues, purples, red, and greens; from dark and gray, to vibrant and neon. It was filled with flowers, trees, bushes, and plants I had never even seen before. My hand found his as we walked, lacing my fingers between his and holding his hand in a light grip. Dracon’s hand held mine firmly, using it to pull me closer to him as we traveled through the vegetation. Finally, after about twenty minutes of walking straight through the jungle, Dracon motioned for me to stop.
At first, I didn’t know why. I didn’t see any animals around other than bird-like creatures in the trees. Pulling his hand from mine, he held his index finger to his lips and with his other hand, reached behind him and pulled his ax from the sheath. Moving very slowly and carefully, he stood behind me and placed the metal staff in my hands. It hit me then just what I was about to do. Man, I really needed to start thinking things through and not just saying things or doing things on impulse. I had never killed anything but bugs in my life and had never once even thought about taking an animal's life. The cultural difference was tremendous. I never had to even think about the meat I ate once being an animal, whereas Dracon and his people looked their food in the eyes before killing, skinning, and cooking it. Anxiety ran through me a bit, worried that I would actually be able to do it. I wasn’t sure why I wanted to, but I wanted to impress Dracon and his people; I wanted to prove to them that I wasn’t like the other humans, and wanted to show appreciation of their culture. I didn’t know how other than to help where I could, and this seemed like a good way to do just that.
His large red hands guided my hands towards the top of the staff. Just below the holes where the lasers would come from, was a very small and unnoticeable switch. “Be careful with your hand positions, you don’t want to get burned by the lasers,” he whispered to me as he guided my thumb to pressed up on the switch before pushing my hands down the staff. With a flicker, two bows of blue light came from the top of the staff, the staff had a slight vibration while the lasers were on. “Can you hear it?” he whispered into my ear, his face lowered to where his lips brushed against the skin of my ear.
“Hear what?” I asked in a hushed tone. But just as the words left my mouth, just a few yards in the distance there was a rustling noise followed by a loud, whiny grunt. It sounded so strange, unlike any animal I had ever heard. “What is that?” I asked, looking up to him.
Dracon reached a hand down and turned my cheek back towards where the sound came from. “Don’t look at me, look at where the prey will be. It’s called a kawrun. It’s like a big…” he paused, trying to think of a word, “pig, I think you guys call it. But kawruns can be very aggressive when scared. That’s why you have to be quiet and surprise it. We’re going to sneak over there, and when we approach it, you swing the ax down and chop its neck.”
I swallowed the lump which had grown in my throat and gave a nod. So a wild, aggressive, alien pig was just a few yards away from me and my clumsy ass was meant to gracefully strike and kill it in one blow so that it didn’t attack me. That couldn’t end badly at all. Dracon nudged me from behind to walk forward. Taking a deep breath, I lightly began to trek forward. Each step was deliberate, placing my foot down as lightly as possible. The kawrun was behind a bush, sounding like it was eating something. I could feel my heart racing as we neared, my inner-self chanting ‘it’s going to be okay, it’s going to be okay, it’s going to be okay’. All I could think of though was how much I could mess up; I could just picture it. Freak out when I see it, close my eyes when I swung it and miss—possibly chopping one of mine of Dracon’s limbs off, and the kawrun charging at us and attacking us. I tried to soothe my woes by saying Dracon was there, and I was fairly certain he wouldn’t let anything like that happen; he would simply take over if it became that way.
We finally approached the bush and I peered over it with wide eyes. The kawrun was bigger than a pig, more like a boar. It had lavender skin with large black spots covering it. It had the body of a boar, but the face of… well, nothing like the livestock humans were used to. It had a protruding jaw with large pointed teeth, no nose but just large nostrils just above its upper lip, and small beady eyes. It also had small, rounded horns clustering on the top of its head and trailing down the spine of its back. The beast wasn’t paying any attention to them, its horrid mouth dug into the tall grass as it tried to eat at something. I stood there in marvel for a long few moments before I felt Dracon’s hand squeezing my hip—I suppose that was his signal to hurry up and strike.
I tried not to think about it, and tried to push the thought it was a living animal out of my mind. It was just a task that had to be complete, and his people did it all the time in order to survive. Slowly and silently, I stepped to the side towards where the kawrun was and began to pick the ax up to lift above my head. My heart was racing from the anxiety, but I tried to calm myself the best I could in order to keep my hands from shaking. Damnit Amelia, just do it, I thought bitterly to myself. Without another thought, I brought the ax high above my head and then swung down with all my might. There was a loud squeal and then a thump. My eyes lowered to find the kawrun on the ground, its neck with a massive gash along the back of it. The beast was stiff, its eyes lifeless as the blood drained from its neck.
While usually, I would have probably vomited at the sight of a creature lying dead on the ground, bleeding out, I actually felt a sense of pride. I had actually done it!? Dracon was already walking over to check out the kawrun as I teemed with pride; only stopping for a moment to turn the switch on the ax off. “Oh my god, I actually did it!” I exclaimed, grabbing at his arm. “I really didn’t think I was actually going to be able to do it. But I did it. I can’t believe it.”
His lilac hues looked over my expression with a chuckle, seeming to find entertainment in my excitement. “Oh yes, very proud of you, Amelia the Slaughterer,” he joked.
I gave him a nudge, “Hey don’t mock me. Humans don’t typically kill their own food. So it’s a big deal, thank you very much.”
Dracon gave a strange look then, “Then how do you get your meat?”
“Well, certain people raise and breed cattle in massive quantities, and then slaughter them and sell their meat in packages,” I explained. “I’ve never done anything like this.”
Dracon’s strange expression faded into a soft grin then. “Well then, let’s get your prized kill back to the tribe. Looks like you killed a good one,” he gave a wink before stepping over the bush to
retrieve the kawrun. “They may even welcome you into the feast with a prize like this,” Dracon called to me before rolling the beast over to let the blood finish draining from it. He then bent down and lifted it up with a heave. I couldn’t help but gape at his strength. That thing had to be a few hundred pounds. While he wasn’t carrying it as though it weighed nothing, it was still amazing he could even lift it. On a good day, I could do a pull-up and support my own weight—nothing at the caliber he was carrying.
I stayed close to him, the staff of the ax still in my hands. “Feast? What are they celebrating?” I asked.
“Peace, another day of living, having bountiful food, whatever you want it to be a celebration of. We have feasts a lot since the war began to be together as a whole I suppose and celebrate in case it is our last. Our tribe has always celebrated a lot, though. With our communal way of living and sharing our food anyways, it just makes sense,” he explained with a slightly strained voice while he carried the kawrun. He gave a soft chuckle, “There are a few there who will just love you for killing this guy.”
I hoped he was right; I wanted the Navani to see me as something, anything that wasn’t the colonists there on Shaviro. To see me as an ally, not an enemy.
16
Dracon
By the time we returned to the tribe, the feast had already begun to be set up. I had dropped the kawrun off with the men in charge of cooking the meats, who praised me for the kill. And when I informed them it was Amelia who killed it, they fell silent and all seemed to turn away; only one of them actually looked at her and gave a half-hearted thanks. I tried to not let it bother me that they wouldn’t just accept her. They didn’t have the connection I had with her, and they didn’t see her in the light I saw her. It would take time for them to accept her, but they would have to. After taking the time to let what the shaman had said about Amelia being my fated mate sink in, and spending time with her by showing her around the tribe and taking her hunting… I knew it was true. Amelia was my fated mate, and I would claim her as my own, as my wife.
I guided Amelia back to the seats we had sat in before. Once again, there was an abundant feast spread out across the long wooden tables; and in the middle of it all was the roasted kawrun Amelia had killed. It was a plump beast and looked beautifully cooked. If only they would praise her like they would if anyone else would have brought that back to the tribe. I tried not to dwell on it anymore, wanting to enjoy the meal. Everyone ate happily, talking and laughing amongst themselves. This time, I partook of drinking wine, pouring Amelia and I both a cup of it. As everyone was so distracted by the food and their conversation, I couldn’t help the temptation to touch her. My skin craved hers so badly, in the most innocent and the dirtiest of ways. My fingertips brushed against the skin of her knee under the table, drawing circles in her skin. Amelia looked up at me in surprise but didn’t say a word, only looking down to her food and smiling softly to herself. My hearts gave a heavy pound at the sight of it as I wondered if she maybe felt the connection too, even if she was human. I couldn’t wait to claim her, to make her mine forever so that I didn’t have to sneak touches. So that we could walk around without fear of people knowing what was happening behind closed doors.
My hand remained on her knee the rest of the time we ate, my fingers massaging her skin and tracing shapes. When I was finished eating, I stood and began to walk with her to the drummers again since she had enjoyed their show the last time. As we approached the circle of people, I noticed Shan walking in our general direction. If I was to claim her, I would need those close to me to have my back. And that would start with him. Putting a hand on Amelia’s shoulder, I looked down to her, “I need to talk to someone for a minute. You go sit with the drummers, I’ll be right over here so no one will mess with you. If they try, I’ll be there.” Her expression turned uneasy as she looked to the drummers and the fire, many of the people already crowding around. She hesitated but then nodded and walked over. I watched as she walked over and picked a spot rather far away from everyone. No one looked at her, purposefully turning their faces so to not look at her. Well, it was better than trying to attack her. So it was a step.
When Shan neared, I walked up to him. “I need to speak with you,” I told him. His wife and two children were with him. Giving me a nod, he passed his wife his son before beginning to walk with me.
As we gained a little bit of distance from the festivities, I stopped walking; I didn’t want to go too far from her so that I could see her and make sure she was safe. “This is about the human, isn’t it?” Shan asked calmly as I looked to Amelia.
“It is,” I stated simply, looking back to Shan. I didn’t know how to say it without just being outright with it. “I am going to claim her.”
Shan’s silver eyes were wide then, looking at me with a face of sheer horror. “You’ve got to be joking,” he sneered in a disgusted tone. “She’s a human, Dracon. She’s… she’s not one of us. She’s an alien. That’s not natural.” Shan looked as though he was sick to his stomach just at the thought of Amelia and me together.
“She’s hardly an alien. They look similar to us, just a different color and smaller,” I defended, really not appreciating his disgust.
“Just because we look similar doesn’t mean we are. She’s an enemy, Dracon. Her kind has been mindlessly attacking us for six years now,” Shan rebutted, the sneer still on his face.
“She’s my fated mate, Shan,” I finally told him.
“What are you talking about?” Shan questioned, his disgusted expression then twisting into a look of dubiety as well.
“I went to Shaman Kowlow. He explained to me that she is my fated mate. And that our union will be the hope for our people to get out of this war. Kowlow was certain of it,” I pressed, my eyes locking onto his to let him know how serious I was.
Shan’s face fell as his eyes grew wide once again from shock. He just stared at me with his wide eyes before he finally shook his head. “This isn’t good, Dracon. They will revolt. You need to think about all of it before you do something that can’t be undone. It’s offensive to even hear that our leader is interested in a human. Let alone wanting to claim her.”
I let out a heavy sigh and rubbed my face, not knowing how to explain how I felt about her. There didn’t seem to be words to describe how I felt towards her; there was no way to word it to make him even begin to understand. Before I could try to reason with him, there was a voice approaching us. “How dare you call yourself a leader!”
Well, this would be great. I turned on my heel to find a younger Navani man approaching us with yellow eyes burning with anger. My eyes just narrowed at him, my poster straightening. “Excuse me?” I snapped.
He was right in front of us then. “You heard me! How dare you even think of yourself as a leader. What type of leader wants to claim an enemy as his own?” he growled at me. “You’re a disgrace to the tribe, and to the Navani!”
Splendid, he had heard our conversation. For that, I did blame myself. If I would have been patient and just waited to talk to Shan about it somewhere I didn’t have to keep close to Amelia, it wouldn’t have happened. However, that didn’t excuse this boy talking to me like that. “You better watch your tongue, boy,” I warned, glaring hard at him, “You’re speaking on matters you don’t understand.” There was no way for this kid to understand; he himself was still trying to grasp the concept of fated mates.
“What’s there to understand? You’re our chief, our leader, and you want that repulsive human to what? Be our second in command?” the young man barked at me, anger flaring in me. He shouldn’t speak of Amelia like that.
“That’s enough,” Shan tried to intercept, wanting the boy to just leave.
“No!” the boy stubbornly called, and then grabbed his sheath and tossed it to the side and raised his fists.
I couldn’t help but raise a brow at him, “You’re challenging me?” The thought was laughable. With my muscle mass, I was double his size and not to mention
heavily experienced.
“I am!” he exclaimed. “I’m fighting for dominance of the tribe. We don’t need someone who does not have the tribe as their priority in charge. I, Bise, challenge you, Dracon, for dominance of the tribe.”
Just like that, there was nothing I could do. Challenging the chief for dominance in hand-to-hand combat had existed as long as the tribe had. It served its purpose in assuring that the strongest Navanian was in charge of the tribe. To dishonor the challenge would be to give up my spot as chief. With a heavy sigh, I took my sheath off and handed it to Shan. He then stepped back and I watched the boy carefully. I didn’t want to fight him, he was small and much weaker than me—it really wasn’t a fair fight. But, he had been the one to call it so there was nothing I could do.
With raised fists, the boy ran towards me, going to punch me in the face. I easily dodged and kicked my leg out and tripped him. He fumbled to the ground, as he went to stand, I stood over him and punched him in the face causing him to fall backward. “Give up, boy,” I called down to him. “Call it off now and you can just walk away with that bruised cheek.”
“You arrogant son of a bitch,” he snarled and managed to get to his feet and run towards me again. When he closed in on me, I grabbed him by the throat and picked him up above my head before throwing him to the ground. I could hear him groan as he tried to scramble to his feet. Bise really shouldn’t have challenged me himself. Walking over, I grabbed him up by his navy hair. My hand wrapped in his hair to where he wouldn’t be able to get away. My fist collided with his face repeatedly, the kid’s nose bleeding heavily and his lip busting as well. Letting go of his hair, I gave him a blow to the stomach, knocking him several feet back.