Page 21 of Meat

And besides, this food was far superior to the ksh-gruel they had served on the nith ship.

She relented, took a bite. It was just a nibble, but the rich, creamy flavor of the gravy exploded on her tongue, and immediately all of her resistance crumbled. Perhaps it was simply that she was starving, or perhaps the food really was that good.

Either way, she needed to devour it.

Krogg held the biscuit for her as she took bite after bite, her teeth sinking into the soft buttery layers of the flaky alien biscuit. She was ravenous, and when she got to the end, Alyx was so caught up in her feeding frenzy, she almost nipped the end of Krogg’s finger.

The ukkur jerked his hand back the way a person might do from a snapping dog.

He hissed something. An irritated word in his language.

Alyx felt the blood drain from her face. Not wise to anger these brutal males. She knew that Ravnar was still pissed at her for biting him earlier today. That time it had been more than justified.

This time, however, it had been a pure accident. She had just been so hungry and so distracted by the delicious food.

Krogg seemed to understand, and he took it as a compliment.

He placed the tray in her lap and went back to the other side of the fire to prepare something else.

Alyx stuffed her face.

The food was strange. On the one hand, it was like comfort food. Something from her childhood that she hadn’t tasted in years. Practically everything back on Earth had been replaced by bland synthetics. You couldn’t get food like this anymore. On the other hand, however, the flour used for the biscuits was not quite like wheat-flour, the seasonings not quite like the Earth seasonings she had once known.

And then there was the creamy substance that was infused into the gravy.

That, Alyx did recognize.

Ksh.

But somehow even that was different from the ksh that she was used to tasting. It must not be the stuff grown on the big nith-operated farms, she thought. Krogg and his gang seemed more like hunter-gatherer types. It must be wild ksh that they were using.

As she scarfed down the platter of biscuits, she watched him preparing some of the strange nutrient dense additive. It came in bunches, like huge, milky grapes, which Krogg popped and squeezed into the other dishes he was preparing—fried strips of meat for Ravnar and Jale, and some other mysterious fruity concoction that was probably for Alyx.

Not that she knew how she could possibly eat more.

After finishing off the biscuits, she felt so stuffed she could pop. Jale had also provided her a large wine-skin filled with some kind of ksh-infused wine. It was warm, but the flavor was good. Sweet, but not too sweet, and slightly tart. There was a touch of alcohol in it, and that took the sharp edges off Alyx’s tense nerves.

While she finished off the biscuits and wine, Alyx’s eyes drifted around the campsite, taking it all in again. She stared at the harnessed dinosaur creatures, which were quietly munching on weeds at the edge of the campsite. Not exactly like velociraptors apparently—these pack animals were herbivores it seemed.

Jale noticed what she was looking at, and said, “Skrik.”

“Skrik,” Alyx repeated.

Apparently that’s what those animals were called. And since they were pack animals, that meant these ukkur were travelers. Nomads perhaps? There had to be other ukkur traveling this vast wilderness, right? Was there a bigger tribe, or did they all just live in small gangs like this one?

Alyx wished she could ask these questions, but the language barrier was too big.

And soon Krogg returned with more food.

This time, the offering resembled an alien cobbler of sorts. The syrupy fruit was greenish blue—a weird and not particularly appetizing color, but the warm, sweet smells made Alyx’s mouth water.

Okay, so maybe she did have room for dessert.

And besides, it would be rude to turn down Krogg’s food, right?

She reached for the plate, but Krogg pulled it just out of her reach. This time, instead of letting her eat it on her own, he scooped the food in his massive fingers and fed it to her.

“O-okay,” Alyx stammered.