A grin pulled on their young face, and I couldn’t help but wonder if I’d ever looked as innocent as they did. Cencay said, “Thank you so much.”
“Of course,” I told them sincerely.
With my head held high, I walked down the corridor to the lift. Everything would be fine. Six weeks, and then I’d return to the tunnels. I loved the tunnels. Many didn’t. The cramped warm space, the monotonous work, the shuffling up and down decks were the main reasons people didn’t like them, but those were the things I found relaxing. It was safe, and I could work by myself, which I preferred.
I stepped out on deck two and headed toward the middle of the outside curve of the hull. I paused in my step and smiled. Seth stood outside of his quarters, hands buried in his oversized jacket.
“Seth,” I called. “Where’s Bobbinvoxlyn?”
“Sleeping next to Kal. Bob decided to scream all night, and he was only happy when Kal was bouncing him.”
“Is he alright?” I knew very little about children, and Bobbinvoxlyn was the first drakcol-human hybrid, though I very much doubted he would be the last, given the amount of humans who’d remained on Tamkolvanloknol.
“I’m pretty sure it’s a typical baby thing. Not a big deal at all.” Seth didn’t look the slightest bit concerned, which soothed my worry. He would be in a panic if he thought anything was wrong with his child. “I came to wish you luck on your first day.”
I smiled, tail coiling around Seth’s wrist. “Thank you.”
“Monty is really nice,” he said. “I’m sure you’ll like working for him until your hand heals.”
My hand was fine.
“I’m sure he’ll be perfectly pleasant,” I said, more to comfort Seth than because I truly believed it.
“It was just puke, Wyn,” Seth reminded me.
“If you had puked on Kalvoxrencol, would you still be upset?”
“Yeah. But Urgg says puke binds people together. Maybe it’s best to look at it like that?”
Urgg said many things. Barusians had a much different way of looking at the universe: blood, vomit, broken bones, and all that. When Urgg had first told me vomiting on Monqilcolnen was a bonding experience and that it would bring us closer together, they were thinking of the incident in reference to their own mate. Of course Urgg vomiting on Talvax was more acceptable—they were mates; they were in love.
“If you need anything, you can call,” Seth said, pulling out his glowing touchstone.
“I already know I need noodles for lunch and maybe pastries from Urgg’s bakery.”
Seth smiled. “I will meet you for lunch. I was going to see Urgg anyway. Mentoring thing and all that.”
Urgg was Seth’s oravirven—the one who helped guide Seth through being Crystal-bound mates with Kalvoxrencol. When someone appealed to the Crystal, or was chosen as a mate in Seth’s case, a oravirven was assigned to them to assist the person through the process. The oravirven had been through it before, so they were best suited. It was a lifelong bond between the two of them. It was how Urgg and Seth had met and became friends. It was also how I’d met Seth; Urgg had introduced us.
It was growing late, and I couldn’t be tardy for my first day. I said a quick goodbye to Seth and half-raced toward Monqilcolnen’s office. I pushed the panel, and the door opened, making me start. I’d forgotten he’d added me to his security.
Monqilcolnen looked up before returning his focus to the screen in his hand. He was seated behind his desk, his hair hanging around him. Cincin was sprawled over his shoulders, her orange fur mixing in with his silver hair. His expression was peaceful, as it always was. Cincin gave me a small meow in welcome, but she didn’t move.
I tilted my head to the side, offering him my throat. “Greetings, Commander.”
“That’s unnecessary, Lieutenant Wyn.”
My tail hooked around my ankle as my shoulders hunched. I forced myself to relax and hide the signs of my muscles tightening. Monqilcolnen had barely even looked at me, and I was cringing. It didn’t take much.
Finally, he focused on me, dropping the screen to his metal desk with a loud clack that made me flinch. His golden eyes narrowed. Whenever I looked into his eyes, I was heavily reminded of Lucy—their eyes were an almost identical shade. It was like he could see my soul, and I didn’t like it. Whatever would he find in there? He’d probably hate me even more if hecouldsee into my soul.
“Good morning,” he said, his gaze traveling over my frame.
“What can I do for you today?” I asked, hoping to move this along so I could disappear from his intense look, which was making my pulse pick up.
He gestured to the plethora of screens lying haphazardly on his desk. “I have several reports. I need you to prioritize the most important and flag them for me to review. I have marked several engineering logs I need you to summarize the key points for.”
“Is that it?” Hardly a difficult task.
