Alien Barbarians' Hope

by Zara Starr

  While I waited for Karr to come back, it made sense to remain silent and eat.

  The last thing I wanted to do was lift my head to peer back at the continuously staring eyes of an endless wave of entirely purple—and possibly women-starved—males.

  Seven

  Karr

  I followed Otoro and Funi to the furthest cavern—a place that was filled with hoochuli incense.

  I inhaled the scent of the incense and closed my eyes. It was a holy place. The essence of our planet was tied into the very veins of the cave systems we had chosen to inhabit.

  I looked to the two elders who took a seat upon two flat-edged seats that jutted from the cavern’s walls. They looked at me and nodded to the furthest edge seat that stuck out closest to me.

  I took a seat and looked at them. It was Otoro who chose to speak up first, glancing at Funi as he pursed his lips and gathered his voice with a cough to clear his throat.

  “Karr, why did you bring the creature to us? What were you doing when you found it?” he asked me, his eyebrows furrowing as if he was not sure if he should be angry or shocked by my discovery. I knew not what to say about it.

  “I was out fishing for monlas—as I do every season at this time. I intended to smoke them and trade them for topas with Julene, who you know is the only one who can make it. It is one of my favorite things,” I said matter-of-factly.

  Each word was entirely true and I suspected they already knew that was what I would say. It was how I spent all of my days when not engaged in the land hunt. It was where I felt freest—most alive, even.

  “In the lake? How long were you on the water before the storm came upon you?” Funi asked.

  I shrugged. I had been out there at least three hours—enough time to gain at least three fishing baskets of monlas.

  “Three strikings,” I said.

  As I pondered more on it, I was positive it could not have been any more than that. The storms threw off my navigation skills and my ability to tell the hour of the day by the constellations, but nevertheless, that felt about right.

  “And what did you see? How do you know this being is not a danger to us? Do you even know what it is?” Funi fumed at me.

  I could gather he was most certainly suspicious of the female, but I wondered if he wouldn’t have been angry if I had told them I came across another female—even if she did not appear the same as us—after so long without seeing any and did nothing.

  I decided Funi only wanted to press harder on me to feel a sense of power he otherwise did not often gain. It was the sign of a male who had not been long a hunter before retiring to the role of healer.

  Funi bore no scars that I could visibly see but I had heard many a rumor of unseen scarring that came from the very same sort of beast that had been hunting the female in the lake.

  Envy, I decided, was likely the reason for his vicious reaction toward me. There was no doubt, Funi was not at all pleased with me in the least.

  “I do not know anything more than I saw the being flailing in the water, close to being consumed by a lake worm. Because the torrent was upon me, I used the wind and my sails to quickly remove her from the water and brought her ashore. It made no sense to dally about what she was when she would have surely been…”

  I halted myself from speaking further upon the realization that I had begun calling Ella a ‘she’—therefore revealing what I had hoped to keep a secret until it became pressing. As it seemed, now did appear to be that moment.

  “You just said you did not know what the creature was, but you have identified the gender as female. How can this be?” Otoro asked me.

  “Because of how she looks,” I said, my tone short and simple. The less I engaged any emotional response the better I would be.

  “We do not know anything about her except that she appeared in a place nobody but you will venture. This could be dangerous for us all,” Funi said. “Do you not see how this could be dangerous, Otoro?” he asked, directing the question toward his peer and away from me.

  “That is very possible,” Otoro began as he glanced away from Funi. “Do you see our position, Karr?” he asked me.

  I shrugged.

  “She is a female. Any female could be of importance to our kind. Can you deny this fact or is the possibility of us being the last of our kind acceptable to you?” I asked, bringing up the topic they had seemingly shied away from.

  I knew they both knew the rest of the tribe would agree. The way they had been looking at Ella when I’d left her with Julene revealed everything—even what had yet to be spoken.

  “She did not seem capable of speech,” Funi said as if to indicate that she was a being of lesser intelligence.

  I scoffed and shook my head, having already discovered that she was anything but stupid.

  “Who is to say that she could even withstand living here. She looks colorless—pallid and deathly,” Fumi said.

  Otoro lifted his hand and began to thumb at the beads on the ends of his plaited beard. He pursed his lips as he thought in silence and I wondered if he too believed Ella to be sickly. I had to admit that I had thought the same.

  “She is capable of speech. And she is not stupid. She drew pictograms in the dirt to show what she remembered from the lake and the worm,” I explained.

  “Is that so? You said you did not know much of her, but yet you found a way to communicate. Was it you who initiated it?” Otoro asked me.

  “No, she found a stick and approached me. Then she began to draw and I understood what the scene was so I took the stick from her and drew my side of things, my rescuing her from the lake and the worm,” I said. “It is true that I do not know anything about where she hails from or what tribe she is from, but I do know one thing.”

  “What is that, Karr?” Funi asked, narrowing his eyes.

  “I taught her my name by pointing at myself and saying my name to her. When she did the same, she said EL-Luh,” I said.

  “EL-Luh?” Otoro asked.

  I nodded humbly.

  “Yes, Ella,” I said the syllables quickly, as she had, in hopes that I had matched it somewhat.

  “What a strange name,” Funi said. “I do not think it wise to keep this Ella,” he said sternly.

  “I understand that she does not look the same as us, but we have a duty to not throw out any female who could possibly bear more children for our kind—no matter if she is of our tribe or not. She is obviously intelligent. If she were not she would not have been so resourceful as to have thought to draw something,” I said.

  “Where do you think she could have come from? Is it not strange that she suddenly appeared—in the midst of the lake of all places?” Funi asked.

  I immediately understood why he had been so argumentative. He did not believe me.

  I gritted my teeth, balling up my fists as I tilted my head. My eyes narrowing instantly upon him as I struggled not to lunge forward and rip his skull from the base of his spine. How dare he insinuate that I would lie!

  “I would remind you that I have been nothing but honorable to this tribe,” I said, glancing toward Otoro as I continued. “I do not know anything further about her, but with her being female I will take no part in seeing her banishment.”

  “Karr.”

  I turned to glance at the cavern entrance as Khay poked his head in. I rolled my eyes—my younger brother never did listen to reason. I should have expected this.

  “Are there more like her?” he asked.

  “I do not know. I did not see others—only her,” I retorted.

  Khay smiled widely and tilted his head as he peered back at Otoro and Funi.

  “If there were to be a vote I would support keeping the female. My brother speaks wisdom when he says that no others will support your wishes, Funi,” Khay said.

  I smiled and chuckled slightly. At least he still stood for loyalty, even though we both knew the two males before us had been partially to blame for our mother’s death—though neither would admit it.<
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  “They are both grand hunters, Funi. They both deserve the opportunity for a triad should the female be genetically similar. If we banish her to the jungle she shall surely perish and never will we know if she could be a match for species continuation.”

  “We know that Julene is barren. She had only sons and no others in more than ten years. I suspect clinovis infection has wiped out most of us and if we deny our males the opportunity to mate we will be facing certain extinction,” Otoro admitted.

  I suddenly wondered if he felt any regret for upholding the laws of the ancients when we were facing elimination. It occurred to me that if they had not screwed up that day in the woods and protected our mother, she may have one day bore me and my brother a sister.

  “Very well, then he should be the one to house her and feed her and handle all of her issues. I do not see why the rest of us should be burdened with such things,” Funi said.

  I sneered slightly and shook my head.

  “No, she should be afforded the same treatment we would afford our own kind. She is a sentient creature and intelligent. If we mistreat her, do you not think she will notice? How inclined will she be to partake in our customs if we treat her worse than the animals we domesticate and hunt?” I asked.

  I shook my head again and peered back at Otoro. “I am not sure if she is ill or not, but she was found in icing waters. I think she should be checked by healers and tended to by Julene,” I explained.

  “She does look like she needs tending. She is a female and she is frail. We must see to her overall wellbeing. Especially if we are hoping to have her agree to a triad,” Khay reaffirmed.

  Funi snorted and shook his head, narrowing his eyes at me and my brother.

  “Fine, we shall see to these things but she is your obligation. You are to protect her and you are to see to her needs. If she brings about troubles for this tribe it will be the two of you who are held responsible,” Funi said.

  “That sounds fair enough, as this gives us both the first opportunity to earn a triad,” Khay said coolly.

  I chuckled slightly. My brother always had a lighthearted approach and seemed to be cheery even in the most awkward of circumstances.

  “Do you agree to this, Karr?” Otoro asked, looking past my brother, directly to me.

  I nodded. “Yes, if there is a possibility of us being able to mate with her we should do our best to keep her safe.”

  “I am still not even certain she will survive given how she looks, but you can figure that out for yourselves,” Funi said.

  “I will ensure that she is cared for,” I said firmly.

  Funi scoffed and shook his head.

  “Then we have counseled. If any of her kind show up looking for her you will be the first to be called up, Karr,” Otoro said.

  I nodded. I understood the duty I had undertaken. I had understood it from the moment I had chosen to save Ella.

  “We should determine from where she came once the storm has cleared away,” Funi said as if he were surprised that such a thing hadn’t been first mentioned by Otoro, the elder of the two.

  Otoro nodded. “Aye, it does seem wise to do our best to learn where she has come from. Maybe the pictograms will help you more, Karr. It seems she has learned a way to reach you despite the language barrier,” Otoro said.

  “Do you need anything more from me?” Karr asked, glancing toward Khay who now stood in silence as I finished up my speech.

  “No, but you understand that many of the males will find interest in the creature. Do you not?” Otoro asked.

  “Yes, I do understand that,” I said.

  It had been the very thing I had hoped to keep at bay for as long as possible and I considered that Ella’s appearance may be critical here. At least when it came to convincing the other males that she was still not capable of integrating into their culture. Especially if she was honestly sick.

  “Then you are dismissed,” Otoro muttered.

  I sighed, feeling a sense of relief wash over me as I turned to exit and return to Ella.

  Ella

  I lifted my head up to see Karr, along with the two elders he had disappeared with earlier, returning to the fire circle and glancing at me.

  I perked a brow as Karr walked over to me and began grunting toward Julene. I wondered if he noticed I had eaten and the remnants of citrus fruit skin that were strewn all around me.

  Karr held out his hand to me and I grabbed ahold of it as I slowly stood up. He nodded and his lips seemed to spread out, revealing the same jagged teeth I had seen earlier when he had smiled.

  I tilted my head curiously as I saw a younger purple male approaching just to the left and slightly behind Karr.

  I glanced at him and suddenly felt like I was no more than three feet tall. These beings were ginormous. I must have appeared to be a miniature person, or perhaps even a child, in their eyes.

  Suddenly, I became curious, noting that there had only been one female nearby; Julene. I wondered if there were even any children in the tribe at all.

  I continued to stand in silence, as more males came closer to me and Karr. The one that stood nearest him seemed to grin at me as he began grunting toward Karr and I wondered if he was talking about me or making fun of how I looked.

  All of a sudden, I felt like a freak in the freak show—for being as boring and normal looking as I had first deemed myself to be.

  Karr

  As I came back out of the cavern, I immediately noticed how Arh had intentionally gotten as close to Ella as he possibly could.

  Julene had done her due diligence and watched over the female, but already the sniffing noses of the tribe were snorting just inches from her.

  With Khay following after me, I was fortunate not to have to speak up on such things.

  “What are you snorting at her for already, Arh?” Khay asked, “We hadn’t even finished speaking to the elders and already you are here to inhale the scent of a female that is not yours,” he said.

  Arh growled as he snapped his gaze toward Khay.

  “Did you and your brother think you would be the only ones to know of this creature’s potential? You could smell the femininity on her for miles,” Arh chuckled.

  “Are you certain that is not the smell of your ass after so long without bathing?” Khay asked, his chuckling immediately filling the air.

  I shook my head. My brother was somewhat of an instigator, and though it was often hilarious, I knew that Arh could rip him apart if he so chose.

  “You should silence that flapping muscle inside of your gums, Khay. I would hate for your brother to suffer the loss of his last remaining family member,” Arh seethed. “Besides, if the elders gave you permission to have her here then we all have a fair opportunity at her. You cannot keep her to yourselves.”

  “Oh, but you forget a key piece with triad choosing, Arh,” Khay began with a smirk. “You see, she has to choose her three mates. You do not get a choice in the matter and, with how horrible you smell, I somehow doubt she would select a stinky male for a mate,” he finished.

  Arh groaned and walked over to Ella, leaning over her head as he inhaled deeply. Ella shifted closer to me suddenly, her eyes rising up to meet with Arh’s as she stared back at him.

  “I think that is enough. She needs to be seen by the healers,” I said. “I have been given instructions to take care of her and I will be doing so. Do not approach and sniff her. She is not an animal on the hunt, Arh. Treat her like a living being,” I said.

  “Very well, but remember that if she stays here the matter of a triad will come up. And if it does, I aim to do everything in my power to persuade her to choose me,” Arh said.

  I shrugged.

  “So be it, but not today,” I muttered. I wanted to get Ella as far away from the other males as quickly as possible. From the way she stood close to me, it appeared she wanted the same.

  I began to shift my feet forward, pushing past Arh as I made my way toward Julene. I could still feel his eyes
burning into my back as Ella moved alongside me with Khay just behind her.

  My brother would not push himself off on anything he thought was mine. He understood that I had been the one to come across this female first. I had been the one who risked myself to rescue her and that meant I would be the one who had the first choice—if Ella ever got to the point of choosing.

  “What did the elders tell you?” Julene asked as I came to stand before her.

  I inhaled deeply and straightened my back. “I will be keeping her in my care and my home cave, but I am concerned she is not well. Can you bring herbs and more water to assist in her care? I am worried that she is not well due to her size and coloring. She may be malnourished,” I explained.

  “Aye, she seems to like the sweet water and Estrela fruits,” Julene muttered. “The Estrela fruits have much calcium but she did not touch any of the topas cheese or the meats. I am not sure why,” Julene observed.

  “I tried to give her brine and she did drink it, but I am not surprised that she preferred the sweet waters. You too seem to dislike it and I remember my mother hating it,” I replied.

  “It does not taste good. But you probably are so accustomed to it now that it makes little difference and when there is nothing else to drink, this is true. It makes none. It is sustenance all the same,” Julene said.

  “Come within the hour with the herbs, if you can. I imagine a sleeping herb would be good for her at this time. Rest seems to be eluding her and I do not know if she is comfortable in the cave. Do you have any vakasha root?” I asked.

  Julene nodded.

  “Yes, I will bring vakasha and more sweet water. I also think more of the Estrela fruits may be good since she liked them so much,” she said.

  I nodded. This was why having only one female in the tribe was such a burden, but at least Ella would have one person capable of caring for her on her side.