Without another word—though we couldn’t understand them anyway—our escort of giants began leading the way, into the building Dani had so admired on arrival, and then down the stairs and through the tunnel with its sinuous, water-themed carvings. Soon, we reached the entryway where steps led into the water. We’d have to swim out. Dani’s expression was much clearer to me than Taktak’s; it was obvious she did not look forward tothe cold water.
“Come,” I said, taking her hand and leading her after Taktak down the massive, giant-sized steps. “I’ll keep you warm, and there’s still enough air in my suit for the return trip. Don’t worry.” The water was colder here than up near the surface, not warmed by the sun, and Dani trembled in my arms as we submerged ourselves.
There were eyes on us, though, several curious gazes showing far too much interest in our interaction. The white cloth Dani had tied around her chest as an improvised shirt was going transparent, revealing the black lace and stretchy fabric of her supportive top. I began to growl, furious that they might be eyeing her breasts, but Dani pressed a hand to my shoulder and shook her head. “No, I think they’re wondering how we’re going to make the swim. I don’t think they believed Taktak’s description of our dive yesterday.”
Not entirely reassured, I huffed and pulled her more tightly against me. Freeing the air straw for her from the collar of my armor, I offered it to her. Then, I set about assuring myself that both the bag with samples, Bex, and Dani’s tablet with research were properly secured. There was a wave as more of the giants escorting us got into the water, and Dani spluttered as some of it got into her face. I was tempted to snarl again, but she pressed the straw to her mouth and nodded at me to go just then. Perhaps that was the more tactical option.
Dani clung tightly to me as we swam through the cave and back out into the lake. Then, I had to orient myself and search the sunlit waters to locate where Taktak had gone. The giant was a fast swimmer, but I had his scent, and the water gave me an advantage. I did not think the giants following Dani and me from the cave expected the speed I couldmuster when I took off. We left them briefly in our wake, even weighed down with my mate, my cannon, and the samples.
Reaching the surface, I breached slowly because I wanted to make absolutely certain there were no surprises waiting for us. We were surfacing by the right bank, which appeared safe, with plenty of options for cover. The left bank, where I knew we’d left the mercenaries chasing us, also appeared empty. That was a good sign; perhaps we’d shaken them for now. Perhaps the Kertinal had discovered their presence and kicked them off their planet.
Taktak was rising from the water and ducking into the trees, his ax in hand. More of his males were following his example, surfacing and rushing for tactical cover. It was very practiced, very smooth. I was impressed. Following their lead, Dani and I did the same, our feet sinking into soft sand and then loamy earth as we ducked beneath the jungle trees.
Dani stood next to me, shaking from the cold, and I whisked the wetness from her bare skin with my hands. “You’ll warm up soon,” I assured her, my gills flaring in my neck as I recalled the cold water. The sun and the heat in the forest would take care of that, even if it would take ages for her clothing to dry. Her pants were ragged by now, and the shirt she’d worn before was lost, hence her improvised top made from fabric taken from the giants. I had nothing clean or dry to offer her, but she did not complain, leaning into my armor-clad body for warmth and safety. I gladly held her close, but I raised my comm to check the maps and make certain we’d go in the right direction once we saidgoodbye to Taktak.
I thought they only meant to escort us to the surface, but I soon discovered I was wrong. No, these giants took their jars of red clay and began diligently painting stripes along their bodies and rubbing it into their hair—some kind of camouflage, perhaps a natural repellent against the insects that hummed and buzzed around us. They were staying with us for now, but I did not think they meant it as anything other than protection.
Taktak was doing it with such ceremonial precision too, and when he was done, he came to us. First, he offered the jar with the remaining red clay to Dani, which she politely declined. When he drew another garland of flowers from a pouch at his waist and offered her that instead, she blushed. Not a visible blush, but I could sense the heat rise in her skin. “Oh, right…” she muttered, accepting the garland and draping it around her throat. It hung low, and I was pleased that the large flowers now obscured her chest.
“There’s something I meant to say to you, Jaxin,” she said in a hushed tone, as if she did not want it to carry, like it was a secret between her and me, not meant for giant ears, even if they did not speak our languages.
“What is it, little one?” I asked. Taking her hand, I tugged her more tightly back into my arms and fussed over the flowers so they hung just right over the still somewhat transparent fabric of her improvised shirt. She liked that, I could see it in the way her mouth twitched and her black eyes sparkled.
“Well,” she started, then bit her lip as if she were struggling to find the words. “You see, I think that party last night was a mating ceremony.” She was not wrong; even I, of a species that didn’t do mating of any variety—arranged orotherwise—had recognized that. It had been Taktak and his lady’s celebration. He had the look of a male pleased to possess the female he desired.
Dani shook her head. “Yes, them, but us too, Jaxin. It was a double ceremony. It’s not binding anywhere, of course, but I’m pretty sure they were celebratingourmating too.” My eyes might have grown a few sizes in my head, locking onto Dani’s face, then flicking to Taktak as if the male could confirm it. When Dani nodded, satisfaction roared through me so hard and so deep, there was no stopping that flood of emotions. It crashed over my mate, engulfed her, and she went weak-kneed in my arms, a shocked gasp escaping her mouth.
“You like that?” she almost moaned. “You actually want to be mated to me?” Had she not once sensed the level of commitment in my claim? Or had my little scientist struggled to believe it was real? I kissed her upturned mouth, willing all the powerful feelings in my chest to flow into her through that point of contact. I was Rummicaron—I had no words to describe what I felt—but I hoped my little empath could make sense of that for me. For us.
“What do you mean, it’s not binding?” I growled, lifting my head. “You’re mine, Dani.” I clamped my hand over her bare shoulder, where silvery pale dots circled her flesh—my bite mark, a mating mark, a claim. “Mine.” She dangled in my grip as if she did not have the strength to stand, but the smile spreading across her pretty face was so luminous it took my breath away.
“Oh. Jaxin, that’s… I’ve never felt something so beautiful.” Her hands trembled as she lifted them to cup my jaw. “I love you too,” she said, and I sawmyself reflected back at me in her black, mirror-like eyes. This time, I saw not the beast or the monster, the scarred warrior too rough and mean to ever be a match for a female as sweet and kind as Dani. No, I saw what she must see: the protector, the safe haven, and strength. Yeah, I could be that, her shield. I rather liked that role; it came so naturally to me that perhaps that’s what I’d always been.
At the back of my mind, a voice tried to whisper that it was a lie. I’d failed once, one very big, very terrible failure that had cost me my sister. I’d failed to protect the Sineater and his mate much more recently, and it had cost Bex her life. But Bex was just a metal shell; that was not the soul I’d envisioned at my side.
“It’s okay, Jaxin. I know you’re not used to feeling all these things, but I’ll help you.” Dani stroked the skin along my jaw, and she didn’t seem to care that my flesh was much rougher than her silky skin. She was the one who pulled me in for another kiss, and I let myself linger there—her taste, her warmth, and her kindness soaking into me. She loved me. She wasn’t rejecting my claim, but rejoicing in it, just like I was. Perhaps my jubilation over being ‘mated’ by Taktak’s people wasn’t as pure as hers, but that didn’t matter. I was happy because it was yet another tie to keep her by my side. She was happy to be mine.
Taktak cleared his throat with a rough coughing noise, grinning widely through the red clay that painted his face. Then, he gestured with his hand, pointing directly at the distant landing strip the Kertinal had torn through the jungle not that long ago. He knew where we wanted to go, even if we hadn’t told him. Perhaps he knew it was one of the only places off his world, and he was eager to be rid of us. Daniseemed convinced Taktak was a much better ally than that, however, so I’d give him the benefit of the doubt.
The giants kept a protective circle around us as we started moving. Clearly, Taktak felt he owed us protection for saving his life, and I wasn’t going to say no to that. Half a dozen giants would be a good deterrent against another attack from Koratalin’s people. Especially after Taktak had taken down one of her shuttles, they’d think twice about attacking six of them. It just made me worry that Koratalin would find another way to get to Dani and her research somehow.
She was moving easily at my side, rested, happy, and warm now that the humid heat beneath the trees had wrapped itself around us. Her smile was hopeful, and I could almost imagine that her feelings were brushing against my side. Perhaps I was starting to get the hang of it—of understanding what the other felt—or perhaps that was just with her. Either way, I was fine with it. In fact, I rather liked that I might be understanding her better; that I knew her well enough to understand what she might be feeling.
“I think we’re almost there, aren’t we?” Dani asked a few hours later. Taktak had handed each of us a large, round, sweet fruit from a pouch at his belt. It was a bittoosweet for my taste, but it was sustenance, and Dani liked it. If the giants were sharing a midday snack while we walked, she had to be correct. I’d trusted Taktak’s sense of direction and hadn’t checked my comm in some time. When I did so now, I discovered the landing strip couldn’t be more than two miles out. Only a small stream of water was left to cross, and we’d be out of the jungle and onto the cleared stretch of ground surrounding the landing strip—a line-of-sight protective measure, very helpful to see your enemies coming and all that.
“We are,” I agreed, and halted. “We need to say goodbye to Taktak and his males. Any closer to the landing strip, and the Kertinal will start getting antsy. We don’t want them to come to any harm.” I had to assume the landing strip’s protective measures had already detected our approach, including our unusual escort. They would assume Taktak’s group was a scouting party in preparation for an attack on the strip. After all, Taktak’s people were supposedly still rebelling against being forcibly annexed into the Kertinal Empire.
Dani knew as well as I did that, even if the Kertinal Empire was not all bad, they were warmongers, expansionists. Set on claiming this planet, they would be, and no amount of rebellion would stop them. The only question was how many casualties they would cause before all was said and done… I did not want Taktak and his people to be casualties of this claim, but I did not know how to warn them, either—not with a language barrier between us that we didn’t know how to breach.
“Okay,” she said with a decisive nod, and she called out to Taktak. I left the communicating with hands and expressions to her, focusing instead on keeping a sharp eye on our surroundings. With a little fuss, she managed to convey that we needed to travel the last bit alone, and then it was time for goodbyes. Or rather, farewell, because I doubted we’d ever see any of these giants again after this. That did not bother me, but I could tell that Dani was feeling sad about saying goodbye to Taktak. He’d been a shadow in her mind, his feelings out in the open for her gift, for several days now. Iwasn’t quite sure what that did to someone, but I imagined she might feel like she knew him well.
Taktak seemed less sentimental about it, his sharp tail waving at us as he and his friends melted back into the jungle. It didn’t take them very long to vanish from sight, despite their massive sizes. “Gone or watching?” I asked Dani, and she grinned, which meant she was pleased I trusted her abilities on this.
“Watching, definitely watching. I wonder how they do it, hide so well…” Not a puzzle I was going to spend any time on, but one she could think about to her heart’s content as we trekked the final two miles to the strip and our extraction point. I was very happy to return to the Varakartoom at last, to get Dani behind metal walls no Crimelord would be able to penetrate. Into my domain—perhaps into my sleeping tank—so I could show her what mating in the water was like with a Rummicaron.
The jungle ended in a clean line, a swath cut from it several miles wide in every direction. At the center, the landing strip lay on a flat hillside for a little elevation, surrounded by fences and watchtowers at intervals. Several smaller military vessels and supplies had landed, and one was just about to take off. I scanned the area for a shuttle from the Varakartoom, black and distinct, it should have been easily recognizable. “Our ride isn’t there,” I had to conclude after a moment.
That was, with impeccable timing, when Mitnick chose to call my comm. “Jaxin, I see you’re almost there. Good.” He spoke without any greeting, rushing to explain the situation. “We got clearance to pick you up, but they’re not allowing our shuttle to land for somereason. Aramon is pissed, as you can imagine. They’re going to ferry you guys up themselves. Got that? There should be an escort waiting for you at the gate.”
