7
"Do you know when the females are returning?"Marcin asked Solkan.
Solkan shrugged.
Kolvin picked up his cup of water."It is hard to say with females and shopping."
Marcin nodded.
He could not help asking, though.
He missed Gianna.
Her company brought him a great deal of peace, and it seemed to soothe his mind when he started to worry about things that were in the past and no longer a direct threat.
Like the war.
How they were going to get back to Sol, and what would happen to them when they arrived.With Master System still disconnected, they didn’t know what to expect to find when they made it back.
Would they be accepted back?
Or shunned?
"The females wanted clothing," Kolvin said."It could be quite some time before they return."
Marcin agreed.All that Gianna and Tina had was the clothing they owned when they arrived.They would need more than one piece of, well, everything, so Vinka offered to take them to a couple of clothing shops to let them pick up some new clothing.
He glanced at Kolvin and Solkan.Neither one seemed to have had the epiphanies he'd had with Gianna.
Though who Solkan's mate was, he didn't know.Solkan had not made it known to anyone.
Marcin wondered if Vinka knew.He thought to ask her.She spent the most time around Solkan.
"Do you like having this mate, Kolvin?"Marcin asked.
"It is different, for sure," Kolvin replied."I do not know what to expect her to say at any time.One day she is thrilled with everything, and the next day, she's ready to rip everyone's head off.It has kept me vigilant and observant."
Marcin nodded."Are your nightmares getting any better now that we are away from there?"
"I would not say better as much as less intense."
"Do you think she has contributed to that?"
"Why would she?They have only been here a little over a day," Solkan said.
Kolvin raised his eyebrow."Are you expecting a sudden exposure to these females, and we are instantly healed from any and all emotional damage and strain?"
"No.That would be a foolish idea."
"What is it that you're looking for?"Solkan asked.
"Validation that the sensations I am experiencing are equal to what you are experiencing.I have no other references for this, so I don't know normal protocol and what should be unexpected."
"Tina brings a light," Kolvin said."I do not know what it means, but it certainly creates a kind of emotional response."
Marcin nodded.
"It starts in your stomach.You think it is your Craving, but it's stronger than that.Different.It rolls over and over.Like an atom multiplying.It grows in this way that you cannot predict and that you cannot control, until it overwhelms you, like a sea of emotional responses that overpower even the most dominant protocols.You become a slave to it.When all that matters is what you feel, and not what is right or what is protocol.You go only by feeling and need and craving.It's not real.It's not right, and it's not safe.Difficult decisions always must be made.Dangerous ones too.You react with your emotions and not with your logic, and it is those reactions that will get you killed," Solkan said, his thumb rubbing across the faucet cut into the glass he held.
