by R. R. Banks
I knew that they had planned out their attack carefully. It was designed perfectly, but I was still terrified for them. It was not enough for me to sit and wait and hope that what they had come up with would actually work. Finally I stalked across the room to one of the wall sconces that held torches and pulled one down.
"What are you doing?" Zuri asked, standing up.
She had a bandage covering the wound on her chest, the sweet smell of the healing potion Ciyrs had finally perfected seeping through it toward me.
"I can't just sit here. That's my mate out there, and my new home. We started this for them, and I'm not going to let them finish it alone."
I started toward the door and heard footsteps coming after me.
"I'm coming with you."
I turned around and saw Eliana close behind me. I knew of the incredible power that she shared with her mate and that it could be an intense force against the Klimnu. I nodded and looked back at the other women.
"Zuri and Eden, neither of you can come in your conditions. Leia, I'm trusting you to take care of them and make sure that the potion is ready for when the warriors come back. Eden can help you apply it. Stay connected with your mates as much as possible, but don't let them know you're worried. You don't want to distract them. If anything happens, Eliana will connect with Eden."
Eliana grabbed another torch and we rushed out of the meeting hall in the direction of the cliffs. She knew the land better than I did and I let her lead. The darkness had built around the planet and the feeling of impending battle hung heavy over the compound. I ducked my head and continued to run. The fear dissipated as we reached the cliff. I knew that I had faced my own share of battles before and I had come out alive even though then I had little to live for. Now I had everything to live for and I was either going to save it, or die trying.
We climbed the cliff carefully and headed through the chamber into the tunnel. Now that we knew that the transporter was somewhere in the middle, we stayed as close to each other as possible. We didn't want to risk one of us transporting and the other one not. The steepness of the tunnel and the haste in my motivation made my steps fast and for a moment I felt like I was falling. I regained my control and we pushed our way through the tight passage, me guiding her since she had not been with us during the first trip down to the chamber.
"When you start to feel moving air," I whispered to her, "blow out your torch. We don’t want to call attention to ourselves."
"Are you sure that the way they planned it out is going to work?" she asked.
"I have to be," I said.
A few more steps and I felt the movement of air against my cheek. We simultaneously blew out our torches, reaching down to hold hands so that we could stay together in the darkness.
"Be very careful where you step," I told her, "Remember that what looks like water is actually the sky. You don't want to fall into it. Stay on the branches."
We continued forward and suddenly saw flickers of light ahead of us. I pressed myself to the wall of the tunnel and glanced around the corner at the underground forest. Just as Pyra had expected, the entire chamber crawled with slimy, skeletal creatures. Some climbed on the trees, others dangled from the vines, and still others lounged between the branches that looked like roots traversing the ground. One stood on a particularly large branch, releasing small illuminated balls onto the ground so that they floated through the space and filled it with a soft light.
"How much longer?" Eliana whispered.
I brought a finger to my lips to quiet her. There was a slight cracking sound and a few of the Klimnu looked up toward the ceiling. There was another slight sound, and then another. Suddenly the entire space filled with loud, soul-shaking screams as the Denynso warriors dropped down through the holes they had found and enlarged earlier in the day.
The Klimnu scrambled, caught completely off guard by the warriors using their own tactic against them. Following Pyra's instructions, they clung to the trees, wrapping their muscled arms through the hanging vines to keep them from falling into the reflection of the sky. None of us knew what would happen if someone was to fall. It seemed that it would be like shooting directly up into the sky, and none of the warriors wanted to test the theory.
Chaos ensued quickly. I watched the Klimu thrash at the warriors, biting and clawing at them, and crawling up onto each other so that they could better access the men staying close to the trees. I watched as three of the warriors wrapped both arms in the vines and used their powerful upper bodies to pull themselves up so that they were suspended between two trees, enabling them to kick at the Klimnu that approached. The hard hits sent the creatures flying backwards. One skidded across the branches and slipped into the sky, disappearing completely. I heard nothing and there was a moment of intense realization among to warriors.
Suddenly Eliana surged forward. I saw her run toward a Klimnu climbing up the side of a tree toward Pyra and grab it by its neck. The disgusting creature's scream reverberated through the space and I nearly gagged on the scent of burning flesh and ash. In only a few seconds, the Klimnu she held disintegrated into a pile of ash. Inspired by her courage, I left my place in the tunnel and started forward. Before I could even step off of the small section of land in front of the tunnel and onto one of the branches, though, one of the Klimnu dropped down in front of me.
His eyes rolled as he licked his lips and clicked his long claws together. I saw his fangs dripping with saliva and felt my stomach flip. He reached for me, and I let out a scream. I knew that Ty would recognize it immediately.
"Samira!" I heard him yell.
"Ty," I screamed back, "Get me."
I felt the tug in my belly and let go of my control of my body. My feet left the ground and as I rose above the creature who had been threatening me, I planted a kick in the middle of his face, tossing him back into the sky. I continued to kick as I flew toward Ty, managing to knock a few more of the creatures out of their paths toward the warriors. When I reached Ty, he pulled me against him and instructed me to hold onto one of the hanging vines. He pointed out a branch that started just a couple of feet beneath us.
"Jump onto that branch. Keep holding onto the vine for stability, and just swing onto it. Stay there."
I did as he asked, closing my eyes as I held tightly to the vine and jumped. I hit the branch and immediately tangled a vine around my legs to hold me more securely in place. The smell of burning flesh had gotten nearly overwhelming and all around me I could hear the screams of the Klimnu and the men as they clashed. Ty used his mind to lift the creatures and toss them out of the way, Ero ran with such incredible speed that he was able to run from branch to branch across the sky without sinking, Pyra literally snapped and tore the creatures to pieces with his bare hands.
"Jem, no!"
Ty's sudden, tormented scream brought a lull to the battle. I looked around and realized that there were only a few Klimnu left. A warrior stood far out on one of the branches, locked in a struggle with one of the larger of the creatures. Two more had abandoned their previous goals and were now creeping toward the warrior, determined to take a Denynso life. Jem turned to land a solid punch in the middle of one of the creature's faces and knock him off balance. He started to fall, and then grabbed onto Jem's shirt to regain his balance. I looked up and could see Ty struggling to pick him up.
Jem rose a few feet off of the branch, but the Klimnu tugged at him. Pyra rushed down the tree toward them, but Jem held up a hand.
"Stop, Pyra. Don't come out here. You're what they want. Remember, they are trying to get to Criea. If they kill our leader, they weaken our defenses and they can get to the king. There's only one way to stop them, and that is to eliminate them."
Jem thrashed for a few moments, nearly working his way back down to the branch. The creatures tugged him.
"Let me pick you up!" Ty screamed.
"No! Put me down. I'll be fine. These are the last of their kind here and there is something about me that they don'
t know."
One of the creatures scoffed and reached out a hand to claw Jem's face.
"And what is that?" he asked mockingly.
Jem smiled up at all of the warriors.
"I've always wanted to fly."
The warrior wrapped his arms around the three Klimnu and launched himself backwards off of the branch, disappearing into the darkness of the sky. Eliana screamed and I heard Ty cry out the warrior's name. He disentangled himself from the vine and started down the tree toward where Jem had fallen. I reached out and grabbed him by his shirt.
"Stop, Ty."
"I let him die! He was right there."
"Stop. He did what he wanted to do. It's alright. He's among the stars now."
Chapter Sixteen
Ty leaned down and pulled Samira out of the hole in the forest floor. Around them the rest of the warriors were emerging from the moss and taking deep, long breaths of the night air. It was the first night in as long as any of them could remember where no one had to be afraid.
"If that sky was a reflection," he asked, looking up into the sky above them, "That means it was just as much an illusion as the Klimnu were able to make themselves."
"Yes."
"Then where is Jem? If that wasn't the real sky, where did he go?"
Samira wrapped an arm around Ty's waist and hugged him close, knowing that it was him that needed her strength now.
"I don’t know, baby. Wherever he is, though, he saved Uoria."
They walked slowly back to the meeting hall, many nursing wounds, but all alive. Jem was the only one they had lost. When they got inside the hall, Ciyrs, Eliana, Leia, and Eden immediately went to work patching up injuries with the healing potions they had created. Samira had instructed them on how to create several different types of ointments so that they could handle a variety of injuries quickly and effectively without having to go through the challenging and emotionally charged process of healing.
Samira and Ty stepped back and watched everything happening, the entire scene surreal and overwhelming. They watched the moments unfolding in front of her as if they were a series of postcards flashing past her eyes, or individual cells from a movie suddenly coming to life, each contained within its own crystalline second of existence.
Gyyx and Leia kissed in a corner, the tremendous warrior holding his tiny mate off of the ground so that he didn't have to lean down to her.
Eliana and Cirys exchanged meaningful glances as they worked with the warriors, occasionally pausing between patients to touch each other's cheeks or nuzzle noses.
Ero and Zuri sat on one of the benches facing each other, his legs straddling the bench and hers wrapped around his hips as they rested their foreheads against each other's and murmured unheard sentiments.
Pyra was on his knees in front of Eden, his arms wrapped tightly around her hips and his mouth pressing to her belly over and over again as she stroked the back of his head and wiped tears from under her eyes.
Each moment was singular and perfect. The couples existed only for each other right then and it didn't matter what else was going on around them. Ty felt a surge of nearly overwhelming love for Samira and turned to face her.
"I don't know how to do this," he said and she looked at him with worry in her eyes.
"Do what?" she asked.
Ty reached up to tuck a strand of her long, dark hair behind her ear and brush his fingertips across her cheekbone.
"Marry me, Samira."
She looked startled and then a veil of confusion fell over her eyes.
"What?"
"Marry me."
"You said that Denynso don't get married."
"We don't, but humans also don't live on Uoria, and as you might have noticed, that tradition hasn't held up well in the last few months either."
"Do you even understand what marriage is?"
"Not entirely, but you can teach me. I know that it is to humans what our bonding is to us."
"Well, as close as it comes. It's about making promises to each other and standing up in front of everyone that you care about and making public vows committing yourselves to each other."
"We can do that."
"You don't have to do this, Ty. I know that we are mated. That's enough for me."
"I know I don't have to, I want to. I want to give you the experience that you would have had if you had ended up with a human man. I want to know that your commitment to me means the same to you."
"It means more to me, Ty. I love you with everything I have and I am fully and completely committed to spending my life here with you."
"Do you have friends on Earth? A family?"
"A few, I suppose. My mother is there. Though I rarely see her. She hides from my stepfather even more than I do."
"Wouldn't you want them to see you get married? We don't celebrate bonding here. It is a very personal experience, as you know." She smiled and glanced away briefly, "But I think that there is nothing in this galaxy worth celebrating more than what I found with you. I waited for you for my entire life and I know that I resisted you at first, but that only makes me love you all the more because I was so close to pushing you away. I could have lost you forever and I would have spent the rest of my life alone and longing for you rather than spending each moment treasuring you. So, please, Samira. Bring me back to Earth and marry me."
"Then we'll come back to Uoria?"
"Of course."
Ty watched her eyes and saw them sparkle. A smile broke across her lips and she jumped forward into his arms.
"Yes. Yes, I will marry you." She pulled back and looked him in the face again, "Thank you, Ty."
The moment between them broke as a hush fell over the meeting hall. They turned their attention to the opposite side of the room where the king and queen were entering. Creia climbed onto the stage and reached down to help Theia up, leaning forward to touch a kiss to her fingers that he held as she settled into place beside him. He looked out over the crowd and one by one the warriors approached, standing three deep and several across in front of him. They lowered to their knees and bowed their heads to the king, who reached over them with one hand. Ty left Samira's side and joined them, taking his place at the back of the group, now both a warrior and a nurturer.
"I have never been more proud that I am tonight to be the king of this great tribe," Creia said, his voice low with emotion. "Tonight, these men," he turned to look directly at Samira, "and women, put their lives at risk to protect our compound, our people, and our future. We lost one of our warriors. Though he was just one of our great numbers, his life was not inconsequential. We will miss him in everything that we do, and remember his sacrifice for generations to come. Even he, though, would not want this night to be about sadness. We will mourn for our Jem tomorrow. Tonight is a night of celebration."
A cheer rose up from the crowd and the warriors climbed to their feet. Ty rushed forward to the king and queen, calling to Samira in his mind for her to join him. As soon as she was by his side, he stepped close to the edge of the stage.
"Sir," he said, and the king turned to face him.
His face lit up and he reached out to touch Ty's hand, crouching down at the edge of the stage.
"I heard magnificent things about you, Ty. I am so proud of you, and your father would be, too."
Ty felt emotion burning in his throat and nodded his acknowledgment.
"Thank you. I come to you with an official request."
"What can I do for you?"
"I need permission traveling to Earth along with a few of the warriors and the human women."
"Is everything alright?"
Ty turned and smiled at Samira.
"We're getting married."
There was a high-pitched scream behind them and Ty whirled around to see Eden standing just a few feet away, one hand clutching her belly and the other covering her mouth. Pyra ran to her side and wrapped his arm around her.
"Eden? What's wrong? Is it the baby?"
Eden shook her head rapidly and pointed at Ty and Samira.
"They're getting married!"
A ripple of whispers and exclamations rolled back through the room and Ty could pinpoint when each of the human women heard the news. While most of the Denynso didn't even know what the word "married" meant and were questioning the entire concept, each of the human women let out a delighted scream.
"You want to get married?" the king asked.
"I am the only one of my kind to have my power, I might as well be the first of my kind to get married." He chuckled, but then his face grew serious, "With everything that Samira has done for me, there will never be enough ways that I can show her how much I love her. This is just one more way that I can try. You want to promote understanding and cooperation with the humans. Since so many of them have found their way to us, don't you think it's time that we learn about their customs as well?"
"I do," Eliana said and the other human women laughed.
"You have my absolute permission and admiration," Creia said and stood so that he could go back to his wife.
Ty turned and kissed Samira. Behind him he could hear the other human women talking to their mates. He laughed against Samira's mouth. He had a feeling his was not going to be the only wedding the Denynso saw. He turned and saw Pyra nod, then reach down and rub Eden's belly again. Ty smiled. There was so much waiting for them in the future. Now with Samira's hand in his, the threat of the Klimnu gone, and the demons from his past no longer tormenting him, Ty finally felt ready to face each moment and discover what lay just ahead.
( The End )
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