Survivor Planet Series 2-Book Box Set (24 page)

"Put her on your nipple again," Aris instructed, unwilling to lose more ground.

We didn't have diapers, or bottles, or formula, and though I had a pair of ample breasts that the child seemed determined to suckle from, they lacked the sustenance she required. Aris had seen the baby grabbing at my boobs and told me when she grew fussy to let her latch onto a nipple. Grudgingly, and feeling completely inept, I'd attempted it, only to have the baby suck and then shriek when no milk came forth.

"It hurts and just pisses her off," I objected.

"Language," he reminded me.

I sighed deeply and put the baby up to my shoulder and patted her back. "Can't you take her for a while? My arms hurt." He stopped walking and waited for me to catch up. I felt the baby stiffen, and just as Aris took her into his arms, she peed, right down the front of his shirt. Juggling the infant in one arm, he tossed his jacket at me.

"Damn it!" he swore.

"Language," I said with a smirk. My jacket was tied around my waist, and despite the warm day, I put his around my shoulders, leaving my hands free.

Spying a fallen log, Aris sat down and rocked the baby, attempting to hush her crying. He'd earlier warned me that her father might hear her cries and attack us with vengeance. Though giving her back to her family would be best for everyone, we weren't quite sure how to accomplish it without losing an eye, or more. I sat down beside Aris and stared at them both glumly. Once the baby settled, he passed her back to me so he could strip off his sodden shirt. He laid it on the log beside him to dry while I admired his golden chest. The baby began to fuss again, so I passed her back to him. She immediately cuddled against his bare chest and fell asleep. The ease in how he comforted her made me wonder.

"You're a natural at this," I accused.

He arched an eyebrow at me. "No, I'm not. I've no idea what I'm doing."

"You must have handled babies before."

"A few. On Earth," he admitted.

"Are you a father? Did you knock someone up?"

"Of course not!" The baby stirred. "No," he said more quietly.

"Well, then I guess she just likes you better." I was the one who resembled her mother. And I was the one who'd saved her. If it'd been up to him, he'd have left her in the woods to rot. Talk about ingratitude.

Overhead, we suddenly heard a sound neither of us ever hoped to hear. It was the beating of wings; large wings.

Quick as a flash, Aris pushed the baby back into my arms. She immediately began to cry again. Ignoring her distress—and mine—he leapt to his feet and began searching for something to use as a weapon. "Stay behind me," he ordered.

I stood up, holding tight to the wiggling, sobbing infant and was relieved when Aris took up a stance before us brandishing a large stick he'd found. Moments later, with a whoosh of leaves scattering around the forest floor, a figure dropped down several feet away from us. Aris rocked from foot to foot, ready to spring if need be. As he moved, I caught glimpses of the creature.

It had arrived gracefully, coming down on its feet, body bent slightly forward, wings spread wide to absorb the landing. Raising a bowed head, I could see it was a woman, actually, more of a girl. She observed us with her sharp gaze, her head tilted slightly to one side as though listening. Her hair was long and light brown in color, reaching well below her waist. Like the baby's mother, she wore brief clothing. Hers being more of a bikini-type outfit, covering just her ample breasts and lower regions. Like the baby, most of her body was covered with beautiful, bright, multi-colored feathers.

"Give her to me," the girl said.

"What?" Aris gasped. I gasped as well. Who the hell knew they could speak?

"I thought you said they could only grunt," I hissed.

"This one appears half-human. Dregers usually resemble Varlings. I've never seen them speak, only screech," Aris said.

The winged girl stomped her feathered foot and reached out her talon-tipped hands. "Please. Give her to me. She's my sister."

I stepped out from behind Aris. He saw me come up beside him and tried to push me behind again. "Quit it," I told him. "She's not going to hurt us." The baby, seeing the girl, put out her hands to her.

"Gigi!" the baby cried.

Aris dropped the stick he held. He took the baby from me and held her protectively in his strong arms as though reluctant to let her go. After several tense moments, he walked forward. He kissed the baby on her head and then passed her over to the girl. "You're her sister?" He moved back to stand beside me. The baby cooed and gurgled contently.

The girl nodded and kissed the baby as well. "My mother had her with her. She'd been out scavenging for fruit when the storm hit. She...she's not from here. Not like us. She's..."

"Human?" I said. "From Earth."

The girl nodded. "You look like her."

"I'm sorry," Aris began, about to break the bad news. Before he could say anything else, the girl spoke.

"I found her. Back there. I've been tracking you ever since, hoping my sister was alive."

"We couldn't leave her," I said.

"Especially not after..." Aris' words trailed off.

Balancing the baby on her hip, the girl swiped at her nose with a feathered hand. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," Aris and I both said.

"If ever...if you need me...I...I owe you one. My mother always taught me to return a favor."

"Sounds like she was a fine woman," Aris said gently.

The girl bowed her head against the baby. "She was." She stared at us both a moment longer and then, without another word, leapt into the air, the baby held tightly in her arms. Off she flew over the trees and disappeared from view.

"Wow," I said, my head tilted up toward the sky.

"Yeah. I had no idea they could speak. I guess the ones who are half human can."

Though I was happy with the outcome, my arms suddenly felt very light. "I'm gonna miss her."

"It's for the best," Aris said, looking everywhere else but at me. "Let's go." He snatched his shirt and stalked off toward the faint trail again. I trailed after him once I composed myself. For a moment I feared I might actually cry.

There was definitely something the matter with me.

Catching up to my companion, and seeing the slump of his shoulders and the dejected look on his face, I feared I wasn't the only one.

We covered a lot of ground not having to make so many stops. It being just after midday, we discovered a narrow spring and sat at the water's edge to eat some fruit we'd found. Taleon offered a wide variety of tree fruit, along with various berries. I would vow we'd tasted every kind. Aris assured me we had several weeks before the season changed completely. Our plan was to find somewhere safe to call home before the weather turned bad. Hopefully then we could pick and preserve as much food as possible to see us through until the calm season returned.

Flying around on his spaceship when we'd first arrived, I'd been amazed how quickly we traversed various regions. We saw everything from warm, dry desert climates, to jungles, snowy mountains, and forests. Apparently these regions could all be covered on foot in one week, or one hundred Earth miles—the distance of the game. The game's track was chosen as such due to its vastly different regions. Aris said that as far as he knew, other areas of Taleon were not so diverse. Judging from what we'd seen, I'd have to agree. Since our journey began, all we'd traveled through was mainly forest. I was hoping that since Aris' views of Taleon had been mostly limited to the game zone, that major weather swings might be less of a trial in other areas of the planet. I guess we'd soon find out.

"How're you doing?" I asked. Aris had yet to say much since handing over his Little Princess.

"Fine." The dour look on his face suggested otherwise.

"What was it like for you when you were little? Being handed over to the Academy?"

He stared at me. "What's that got to do with anything?"

Could he not see the correlation between the two scenarios? Handing over someone you care about to an unknown fate, never to know if you would see them again. Hadn't it happened to him? And hadn't it just happened to us with the child? "I'm just wondering if it was difficult for you. I mean, were your parents good to you? Was it hard for them to say goodbye?"

"I'm not sure what that has to do..."

"Don't get defensive. I just want to know what it was like for you, and for them. I mean, if I had a baby, I couldn't imagine being forced to hand him or her over at five years of age. Like, did they visit? Were you allowed to go home on holidays?"

He seemed pensive and agitated by my questions. "Yes, my parents were good to me. They remained together after I went to the Academy." He held up a hand when I tried to interrupt. "Yes, they did visit. And we could return home on certain occasions. I also saw them when they delivered my little brother to the Academy three years later. After I graduated, I continued to see them on occasion."

"What about your little brother? Did you see him around the Academy?"

"Yes, now and then. He was in a different age group than me, but we were allowed to spend time together and of course, there were the family times."

"What about later? When you were older and graduated?" I persisted.

"We see each other mostly when we are together as a family. Our work schedules keep us busy. His skills were more geared toward medicine, leading him to pursue different avenues than me. My strengths and interests leaned more toward planetary forces, which led me to apply to work in the fleet."

"And to working for Baynar," I summarized.

He turned his gaze to the water. "Does that answer all your questions?"

"I suppose." I decided to breach another subject. "So after being on Earth, has your view of Calixtus changed any?"

"In what way?"

"In the way they treat humans, for one. Don't you think it's pretty barbaric using us the way your planet has?"

He let out a deep breath and reached down to rinse his hands in the water. Mine were sticky from the fruit as well so I copied his action. "Things have been the way they are on Calixtus for thousands of years."

"Well, then, don't you think it's time they change? You can say a lot of things about humans, but one thing we do besides breed like rabbits is, we evolve. Things change all the time. Thinking changes as well—mostly for the better. Don't you think it's strange that your highly superior planet is still doing what it's done for thousands of years?"

He wiped his hands on his pants and got to his feet. Then he looked down on me. "The way I think about Calixtus doesn't matter. One person is not about to change the way things are done."

I got to my feet as well. "You can't be the only person to think about change."

He stared at me angrily. "How do you know what I think? The way things are on Calixtus may seem archaic and backward to you, but it works. We're so far advanced in many ways that humans cannot even begin to comprehend. Why should we change?"

I stared at him incredulously. "Because you're stealing people away from their lives and their planet. Taking them when you have no right."

The cold smirk he flashed gave me chills. "Really? And tell me, Danni. Tell me how different and better you are?"

I knew he wasn't just talking about terrible things that humans did to each other. He was talking about terrible things that I had done. I swallowed hard.
Remember the lie.
"It was only one time," I said quietly.

"Was it?" For some reason I got the feeling that he saw right through me.

Defiantly, I faced him with a steady gaze until he spun on his heel and stalked away. I took several deep breaths, waiting for my heart to beat regularly and my sweaty palms to cool before I went to join him.
Pull it together!
He waited for me at the top of the slight incline we'd earlier descended to reach the spring. I put away my self-depraved thoughts and pasted on a false façade of nonchalance. But when I reached his side I had the distinct impression that whatever had just gone on between us was no longer important.

Not compared to the threat we now faced.

There, standing barely ten yards away was a huge Roamyn warrior holding a deadly looking steel rod with a glittering, sharp axe blade on one end.

The man smiled. "Ho, there, Ariston. I've come to collect your head, and gain my freedom."

"Drakon," Aris said, staring at the other man in disbelief.

"You...know him?" I asked.

Aris nodded once. I could see his fists were clenched at his sides, probably itching for a weapon of their own.

Drakon swung the rod in a deadly arc, grinning sadistically. "Have you not been informed?" he asked.

Aris' demeanor portrayed a calm I knew he didn't feel. "Informed of what?"

"Word is you're a traitor...to our most
exalted leader
. You stranded him and the others here. And when you returned to make sure they were dead, Baynar overpowered you and took your ship, stranding you here in his stead." He laughed. "Now, isn't that an incredible turn of events?"

Aris refused to answer.

"There's a price on your head."

"What price?" Aris demanded.

"Freedom. He who kills you will be welcomed home."

"It's a lie." I could bite my tongue no longer.

Drakon sneered at me. "I was told you'd have a little whore with you."

"What'd you call me?" I demanded.

Aris grabbed hold of my arm and pushed me behind him. "Quiet," he snapped, then turned his attention back to his foe. "Think about it, Drakon. You knew my mission. It began just as you entered the tournament. I've been mainly on Earth the better part of two years. When would I get the chance to fly back and strand Baynar on Taleon? Why would I want to?"

Drakon shrugged. "Don't know, don't care. I heard it from the man himself. He appeared to me, and probably others as well. Told us what you did, what he wanted, and what he offered in exchange."

"He stranded me here because the lightwing couldn't bear the weight of us all. He was in such a hurry to flee that he and the others tossed my companion and me overboard. Now he's covering his own ass—and no doubt distracting Calixtus from the truth—by having me hunted down."