I walk toward the slimes, or genali, I suppose, but he places a hand on my waist to stop me.
The feel of his scales through the thin fabric makes me shiver.
"I don't think you should be near that much venom. I won't take long."
I can't argue with that and stay put.
As he walks away, I'm able to observe his whole body. The same orange and green fur extends all over him, except for black scales near his hands, throat, and back paws. He isn't striped like a tiger but instead the green color is in a random swirling pattern. My eyes want to just keep following the mesmerizing trails and loops, but I resist.
As my eyes trail over him a sudden memory of the genali talking about a giant venomous cat comes back to me. "Are you a manticorid?"
He pauses and looks back at me. His whiskers aren't extending from his face anymore and hang limply toward his chest. "How did you know?"
"The slimes—I mean genali—talked about you."
"We call them slimes, too. It's a fitting name."
He moves away again and then suddenly whips back around toward me. "Wait. They didn't have you in cryo?"
I shiver and wrap my arms around myself as images try to bubble up right along with the acid in the back of my throat.
"No. I was the, uh… entertainment. N-not sexual, thankfully. Mostly torture gas and threats."
His mane puffs out, sharp black claws extend from his fingers, and a low growl sounds. "I should have taken my time with those two."
17
Ree
He should look terrifying. He has retractable claws and serrated teeth, for fuck's sake.
But I feel safer than I have in weeks.
"I am so sorry, little human. There are no words to express my regret."
I squeeze myself tighter and fight the tears that want to pour out of me.
I've waited so long to hear those words.
That they are coming from an alien who looks like a neon orange lion walking on two legs makes hysterical laughter want to bubble up right along with the tears.
If my life was a painting, Dali would definitely be the painter.
I blink rapidly to clear my mind. "Thank you. That means a lot."
He shakes himself and goes back to his task. I continue observing him as a way to stave off any embarrassing hysterics.
His long mane extends well down his back, coming to a tapered point a few inches away from where his tail starts. It looks just as elegant as you would expect in a feline's tail, shifting with him in graceful sweeps and bounces as he walks. It has a large black ovoid shape at the end that comes to a point, which is covered in the same shiny scales as his throat, arms, and paws.
Or would all four limbs have paws?
I suppose it doesn't matter, but I'll have to listen for how he refers to himself for clues.
His gait is awkward, just like any feline would look trying to walk on two legs, but his torso doesn't have the same shape as a cat.
His fur ripples as he walks and his tail dances along behind him. The muscle structures work in enough different ways that my mind is having a hard time pulling apart the differences.
I just know he looks absolutely deadly and utterly gorgeous.
