WHEN THE SUNS began to sink, Vikan found them shelter for the night.Fortunately, they had begun to pass intoLonivaterritory, on the very far edges ofLopixa.It meant the landscape had started to alter.Since his outpost sat on the very western tip of Luxiria, it meant his land was rocky and filled with steep cliffs that melted into long stretches of shoreline.
The nights were longer in the western lands, which meant they needed to find shelter quickly.And since they were inLoniva, Vikan easily found an empty cave, burrowed in the face of a large, dark cliff, formed by years and years of wind and battering surf.
To reach it, however, they’d had to climb down a worn, steep path to reach the shoreline.It was an arduous hike, but once he saw that the cave was empty of any creatures, he was certain they would be safe and even warm for the night, considering the cave was deep and wide enough to escape the roaring winds and spray from the sea, with plenty space for a fire.
Once they were safely situated inside, hisluxivarested against the floor of the cave for a brief moment.It had been a long day and the only reprieve she’d had was their swim in the inlet earlier that afternoon.
Again, Vikan felt a sense of shame that he’d put his female through this experience.He desperately wished it could have been different, that he could give her warmth and hot meals and soft furs instead of cave floors and small game.
But his female had not complained once.Even when she was sweaty with exertion and breathing heavily from the terrain.
Affection welled up in his chest, sudden and startling.He approached her, dropping down to give her a drink from the water gourds he’d save in his travel sack from the previous night.She took it gratefully and tipped her head back once he made a notch with his claws.
“You humble me, female,” he told her, needing to tell her, pushing back a strand of her hair.He couldn’t stop touching her.And the more he did, the more he craved it, like an addiction.“I put you in this situation foolishly and yet you have shown me how strong and resilient you are.”
Her cheeks flushed an enticing shade of pink, her lips wet from her drink of water.He growled, rapt, as she licked them.
“I just like moving forward,” she told him after a brief pause.“To me, there’s no sense dwelling on the past.It doesn’t accomplish anything so what’s the use?”
Vikan thought that, before Taylor, all he’d done was dwell on the past.He’d been so consumed by it that he’d allowed the past ten rotations to pass him by.
It was ironic, considering he had the gift of foresight.But when had he ever been excited for his future?
Not until now.
He only had two spans left before they reachedLopixa.At the pace they were going, they might even arrive earlier than expected.
“I could learn from you,” he finally murmured, their eyes connecting.She watched him, her eyes lightening with an emotion he couldn’t recognize.
Then, she took another sip of the water gourd before handing it back to him.
“Will you teach me how to make a fire?” she asked.
Vikan struggled with that.She’d already insisted on helping him, but on Luxiria, it was the male’s responsibility to take care of their female, to provide everything for her.
It was an instinct instilled in him since birth.
But his mate was not Luxirian.She was human.Now, he understood why Vaxa’an, at times, had been frustrated by hisluxiva’sneed to work and to contribute equally to their partnership.
It was different on Luxiria, but his female was proving to be independent and strong-willed.Just like how she’d adapted to Luxiria, he would adapt for her.
“Tev,” he finally murmured after a lengthy pause.“Come.”
He rose from his crouched position in front of her, taking her hand to help her from the ground.With his palm on the small of her back, he led her from the cave after leaving his bag behind.
There, on the shores ofLoniva, he was at home.He knew the vegetation, knew what was edible, and what could most easily hold a flame.And eyeing the waves lapping at the shore, he knew what he would catch his female for her meal that night.
So, he showed her all of this.He explained that the long fronds ofillixhe’d used for her feet coverings could be used as tinder, but only the rough, gritty protective layer.Then, he showed her how to dig into the sand deep enough to findreverax’a, a type of clumped mixture of very old sand and clay that kept a flame burning for two spans.He helped her gather some rocks so they could make an enclosed fire pit and then they returned to the cave.
And once there, even though it took slightly longer, she started her first fire with two of his blades and she seemed so delighted by it that Vikan himself felt her satisfaction.
Glad that she would be warm while he caught their meal, Vikan left her, albeit hesitantly.
Usually, he enjoyed diving inLopitax.He enjoyed the hushed quiet of being underwater, where even his visions didn’t dare enter.That evening was no different, but he felt a driving need to return to his mate, to be in her presence.So, he made quick work of their meal, managing to ensnare a largegrimivalathat swam unknowingly by, a fewmervistill enclosed in their protective shells, and onebibivax.
When he emerged from the ocean, he was soaking wet, his hair hanging down his back, but proud of his catch.He would feed his female well that night.
He returned to her quickly, his eyes immediately seeking her out once he ventured deeper into the cave where they would nest for the night.
