"Well someone's in a good mood."
31
Kira
The forest hums with life as we trek along the biome divide, the transition between the dense, lush greenery and the barren, sandy desert still jarring to look at.
Hours have passed since we left the stream behind, and it has been a challenge to resist the temptation to cross over to the desert biome.
The open expanse, free from the tangled underbrush and relentless shrubbery, beckons. Yet, the memory of that subterranean horror we encountered keeps me rooted firmly on the forest side.
The last thing I need is another close call with a creature from the sands. Just thinking about it makes my skin crawl.
And itch. Damn, so much itching. I might go crazy.
The place where the embedded spikes were is a constant torment begging me to scratch at it. Even worse, whatever allergen or poison was in those things has spread to my entire stomach. From my bikini line to the bottom of my breasts, and around my sides is one big burning itch.
I glance back at Drasuk for a distraction, his massive form lumbering through the foliage. He bulldozes through the shrubs and vines as if they're mere cobwebs. I roll my eyes.
Typical.
My thoughts drift back to Ree and the genali ship. The cold, hard reality of our situation gnaws at me.
I'm hesitant to feel optimistic about their chances of surviving the crash, but then again, if I could survive being flung around in my pod and end up near a part of the ship that broke off, maybe they had a fighting chance, too.
Unwilling to let my mind spiral into a pit of worry, I decide to strike up a conversation with Drasuk. "Tell me what you know about the pink aliens that captured us," I say, my voice cutting through the silence. "The genali."
He turns his head slightly, his eyes flickering with something I can't quite place.
"The slimes, as most of us call them," he begins, his voice a low rumble. "They are a weak race, at least physically. High intelligence, though. They used it to trigger their evolution multiple times. They're still weak, but not as much as before.Even a drak hatchling could take out multiple non-modified genali in combat."
"Really?" I say, feigning nonchalance. "Doesn't sound like much of a threat."
Drasuk lets out a snort. "Don't underestimate them. They have a violent view toward females of all species. And they've become the newest conquerors of the universe. Joined forces with the braceaaer at first, but eventually struck out on their own once they improved their evolution and technology."
"The braceaaer?" I ask, curiosity piqued.
"You killed one."
"Oh, I called it a Graylord. I clearly played too many video games when I was young."
He grunts, then continues. "A similarly violent race. Stronger than they look by several factors. No smarter than the genali. The balance of power between the two has been shifting rapidly in favor of the genali, though I don't know why."
"So the genali are the major players? Weird, but okay. They don't really look like a species that would want to go out and conquer the universe. More like something that would be content to remain hidden in a swamp."
He lets out a mirthless laugh. "If only that were the case. While the genali's home planet is marine-based, most of them become scientists, politicians, soldiers, or, like those who captured us, cabal-sponsored bandits and species traffickers."
I absorb this information, trying to wrap my head around it. "So, they're the ones responsible for this mess. All of it? Not just sex trafficking."
"Yes," he says simply.
I walk in silence for a moment, processing. "What about the manticorid? What are they? The genali didn't share much about them."
His demeanor changes, a hint of reverence creeping into his voice. "They are a superspecies in the truest sense. A felidae-based race with remarkable strength, durability, and a healing factor that makes even drakonid recovery look slow. They have uncanny abilities, like gaining immunity to toxins and poisons after being exposed to them once. This immunity spreads to the entire population."
"Wow," I breathe, genuinely impressed.
Drasuk continues. "They were among the first species to begin an expansion effort, covering more than fifteen galaxies over five millennia. They held their territory until they began to demilitarize and pursue other fields instead of combat. Their decline allowed the xarxisi, then the braceaaer, and subsequently the genali to rise."
