I do not understand where this conversation is going. “I came to the colony, so my brothers could be free. I am in a cage, and you…" She isn’t happy in the colony. From what she has said, and what the other women said, I am not sure anyone could be happy living here, but that doesn’t mean she should run away. They would hunt us. Wouldn’t they?
“And I am wondering if my sister had the right idea.” She stands and picks up the forgotten tape measure. “I don't know if they intend to keep you here forever, but I doubt they will let you go."
“Every banish warrior expects to die early.” That I am alive after so many years is almost surprising. I am sure that if Edilk had not found me, I would have died long ago. Everything sincethen has been a blessing and a curse, because surviving as a banished warrior is hard. Making our own tribe and finding joy where possible has eased the burden.
She scowls at me as if she doesn’t understand. How could she?
“You would die in a cage, so your brothers are safe?”
I rest my head against the cool metal of the bars. “They are my brothers; they have saved my life and this time I am saving theirs.”
I did not expect Orik or Edilk to volunteer, Vari would miss Orik too much, and Edilk is in rut. Sunif will need to lead the tribe while Edilk is mating. Aldit might have volunteered, but he was guarding the women. It made sense that it was me.
And I don’t regret it.
Perhaps Chloe, and the leaders of the colony, will want to see a Honey warrior go through rut. If so, that is an experiment I will happily be part of.
She steps in and places her hand on my cheek. “You are brave and selfless."
I kiss her palm and laugh. “What if I told you I only wanted to come to the colony to see if there really are more women than men, and that I hope to find a mate of my own?"
That’s not the reason I surrendered, but it is the spark of hope that burns within me.
Something flickers in her gaze and for a moment I let myself hope she wants to claim me.
15
CHLOE
Iwrite up all my notes, both versions, and check the progress of my lab work, progressing some of it to the next stage. But I cannot keep all of this to myself for much longer. Everyone in the colony needs to be made aware that this planet is inhabited and that there are people we could work with. Working with the Honey would cut our time is survival mode and turn us into a thriving colony much quicker.
There will be some who think Tiril and his people are a threat, but they are the ones who are already holding the guns. They see everything as a threat because that is what they are trained to do.
The leaders see anything that would take power from them as a threat. Most of us want to do more than just survive, we want to thrive and live, and all we are being promised at the moment is that future generations will benefit from our sacrifice. They’ll be an uprising sooner rather than later, because people need more than sacrifice and promises of a better future.
My friends and I agree it is better to revolt sooner rather than later. Later, we will all be ground down by survival. Later, there will be small children. Perhaps that is what the leaders arehoping for. That we will be so busy getting by, we won’t ask too many questions. They’ve certainly kept us busy. Busy and in the dark.
Only they are permitted to see everything, for our own good, of course.
I don’t think the existence of aliens is something we can keep a secret. Already too many soldiers know about them, and I’m surprised one of them hasn’t boasted to his buddies about fighting them. Richard, the man Sabine was matched to, hasn’t said anything about an alien stealing his partner. But then Richard never saw my sister as a partner. She was just the one who was going to raise his kids, and he didn’t give a shit about her or their future children.
At least I have Patrick.
And now I have Tiril, a seditious voice in the back of my mind, whispers. My tongue traces over my lips, as if I can still taste the salt of his cum. After swallowing, I half expected to have an allergic reaction, but so far, there hasn't been one. Perhaps I doubted that Sabine is mated to Tiril’s brother. But it appears the only unexpected result of Honey-human relations is Honey males going into rut.
Which I want to know more about.
A message pings on the screen, a reminder to meet Patrick and the others for a run. If people are watching us, it looks like exercise. We use it to vent, because none of us has a plan. We have ideas, and we want change, but we don’t know what we want that change to be, not yet anyway. Coming up with what we want the colony to be like is much harder than it seems. It’s very easy to criticize and say what we don’t like, but that’s not enough. We need an alternative.
The people who were too vocal about the things they didn’t like went missing.
My little group consists of Patrick, one of his sisters, and two other women and one of the men assigned to them. It’s a weird little mix, and it’s not as though we share a skill set or work together. I met Patrick because the colony decided we are a good match, and I became friends with his sister through him. She was the one who brought the other two women and the guy. I know there were other little groups of dissatisfied people, but gathering in large numbers is not a smart move. And until somebody can lay out a plan to change things to be better for everyone, we are stuck.
We may as well be in a cage like Tiril.
He is less angry than some of us, but then he chose this path. None of us did. None of us were even born when our parents left Earth and sold our lives to the colony, thinking it was the best thing for us, for them, and possibly for humanity.
And maybe if I had stood on Earth, and breathed in the chemical laced air, or begged for water, I might have agreed.
