He’s so handsome with his semi-wet hair and his tawny, golden, and brown hues. I blink and stare up at him, not breathing him in, but breathing in the flowers instead and finding that it makes the moment perfect. Simple but perfect.
I might not be a good hunter, yet. But I can practice and I won’t always need to cough.
I could… do this.
I could live out here with him… like this, taking each day one at a time.
I could sacrifice…wouldsacrifice… for something that’s worth it.
Warming up to the idea, I part my lips to tell him he shouldn’t take me to the encampment today when something loud and mechanical roars in the distance.
I startle, rising to my feet just as Krellix tenses, tilting and lifting his head. He coils his tail under him and looks off in the direction of the sound as it gets louder. I cover my ears and move toward him, and together we listen to the spaceship engine die down as it finishes launching. Leaving Earth behind, the noise eventually fades away into a distant hum.
When it’s gone altogether, I turn to Krellix and his eyes drop to mine. “It is time to go and get you to the encampment.”
I frown at his semi-stern expression.He’s not going to ask me to stay… No matter how much I might want him to.He’s not going to ask me to return with him to Zaku’s with news, and thenoff to wherever next. He’s not going to because he’s afraid that if something happens to me, it’ll be his fault.
The suggestion of delaying going to the encampment another day falls from my lips. I’m just prolonging the inevitable.
I slowly nod and, taking a moment to stifle the tremble in my hands, zip up my jacket. “Okay. You’re right. We should go.”
A ship just took off, and that's notably strange. It hasn’t seemed like many of them have been doing that since they all came down. Where is it going withThe Dreadnautgone?
We don't speak again as I take up formation behind him and to his right. He goes slow enough to make sure his tail is always beside me despite him leading me by several paces. As we travel deeper into the forest and the sounds of the river fade away, the silence between us only grows. Staring at Krellix’s patterned back and his rolling shoulderblades, I don’t know why I suddenly find it so hard to say anything to him.
Maybe it’s because we’ve said our goodbye… Last night—this morning.
He’s taken what he’s wanted.
Every step forward makes me a little angrier than the last. And it’s not until the sounds of drones flying nearby, the distant buzz of machines, and the shouts of people take over the forest noise that I realize just how close we actually are to the encampment. Everything sounds far away but the fact that I can hear them at all already throws me off.
My lips stay shut as we move closer and, drifting my gaze away from Krellix, I start to notice a strange but familiar smell in the air. Looking back to him, I don’t seem to be the only one. Sniffling, I reach for a mask I lost days ago and flick my eyes to the forest around me.What is that… ?
Krellix stops. Pausing beside him, I wait for him to tell me what’s up. He looks off to his left, flaring his nostrils, making his next breath a deep one.
“That smell,” I say, realizing where I know it from, “it’s what caused my throat to burn.” I reach up and touch the front of my neck.
That pulls Krellix’s attention fully to me. “What?”
“Before the Boa—Sada—got me, I was trying to hide from him. I found this place that led underground. A back maintenance entrance of sorts. I was trying to wait him out and went deeper, hoping I’d find another exit and get back to you guys, but instead I ended up in this big room…” I trail off, turning away, not sure if I even want to bring up what I saw to him or not.
“Where?”
“Back where Benjamin and I got split up. There was this standing doorframe?—”
“Standing doorframe? I remember the place. I saw it when I came back to look for you.”
“Krellix… what does it mean?” I eye him and his sudden wary alertness.
“I don’t know. The smell is just… familiar…”
“You didn’t smell it before?”
He shakes his head. “My senses were clogged with smoke.”
I nod. “I might have had something to do with that. I found something down there… something I tried to make sure was properly destroyed.”
He tilts his head as his brow pinches, sliding his tail further under him. “What did you find?”
