Chapter 7
Ciara
T oo many thoughts simultaneously fired off in my brain to allow it to function properly. Amreth’s breathtaking beauty made it even harder for my mind to act rationally. From the moment Kayog told me of my soulmate, my fertile imagination began creating all kinds of scenarios as to what our first meeting would be like. Then my whole world came crashing down during that attack.
“What are you doing here?” I blurted out, instantly flinching that those would have been the first words that came out of my mouth after he confirmed his identity.
By the way he blinked and the uncertainty that flashed over his stunning features, that had not been the reaction he had expected or possibly hoped for.
“I came to rescue you,” he said carefully.
“To rescue me ?” I repeated, my confusion audible in my voice. “How did you get here? How did you find us? Aren’t you a Warden?”
I pressed my palms to my cheeks and shook my head in embarrassment for that sudden surge of verbal diarrhea. I didn’t mean to bombard him with so many questions, but this entire situation seemed surreal.
“Yes, Ciara. I am a Warden on Molvi, and I came as soon as I heard what fate befell you,” he replied with a guarded expression.
“But… Did Kayog tell you about…?” I gestured between the two of us when my voice trailed off.
He nodded. “As soon as it was confirmed that you were missing, Kayog contacted me about you.”
“And you came for me?” I whispered, my voice filled with disbelief.
“Of course,” he replied as if it was self-evident. “What kind of male wouldn’t come to the rescue of his soulmate?”
I stared at him, speechless. A part of me wanted to melt from the inside out that he hadn’t hesitated to come for me when we had never met, let alone spoken to each other. Another was just too blown away to fully understand my conflicting emotions. Aku mentioned that my mate would come, but I kept dismissing it as being way too far-fetched. And yet, here he was, looking good enough to eat.
“Wow,” I said at last, with a mix of wonder and bewilderment. “Who else is here with you? The Enforcers?”
My brow further creased with confusion when he shook his head with an apologetic expression.
“I’m afraid I am alone. The situation is a little tricky,” Amreth replied, carefully choosing his words.
“Let me guess,” I said with an unimpressed tone. “Three Interstellar Doctors aren’t important enough to send in the big guns.”
He nodded again. “The Enforcers couldn’t justify taking on this mission for three civilians as it should be a matter handled by the Peacekeepers. It also doesn’t help that this planet is located inside the Dead Zone. There is no simple way of tracking you here.”
“But you did,” I challenged, my frown deepening.
“I had to… hmmm… skirt around certain rules to come here,” he said reluctantly.
Under different circumstances, the mortified look on his gorgeous face would have been adorable. This male truly was stunning.
He had to be at least 6’5, with broad shoulders and bulging biceps left exposed by the sleeveless, ornate leather breastplate he wore. His skin was on the darker spectrum for an Obosian. Like dark elves, they tended to have very somber skin, usually in the midnight blue tinge or very dark grey. His had a lot more grayish-brown in it in what I would call charcoal. His black sclera made his silver white eyes starkly stand out, drawing me in an almost irresistible fashion. He had a noble nose, and the most sensuous, plump lips made to kiss.
Like all his people, a series of dark scales adorned his forehead, shifting into the main set of black horns on top of his head, with a smaller recurved set behind his ears. They, too, contrasted sharply with his long, silver-white hair, the same color as mine. Where that hue was standard for Obosians, for me, it was due to the fact that I had the rare human piebald trait. Even folded, his black, leather bat wings looked massive, not to mention lethal with the sharp talons at the tips and lining the bottom edges.
Naturally, I couldn’t help my eyes lingering on his many visible facial piercings. It was a cultural thing for Obosians and a great source of pride. Their people couldn’t simply slap a piercing on themselves. They needed to earn that privilege through a multitude of potential accomplishments for which they were given a varying amount of a rare metal called algarium. From it, they could forge the piercing in a shape they liked for the spot on their body that tempted them the most.
Amreth had a small ring on the side of each of his nostrils, a little spike in his labret—the spot right below the bottom lip, but above the chin, two rings in his left eyebrow, and a few more along the sides of his ears. I couldn’t see any piercings on his arms, but I didn’t doubt for a minute that a few more hid beneath his breastplate.
I immediately shut down the thought rearing its head as to whether he also had some in his naughty bits. By all accounts, both male and female Obosians made sure to have some in their private areas for extra sensations. Considering they possessed erotic powers that often had them labelled as Incubi and Succubi, it wasn’t all that surprising.
“Wow,” I said at last, genuinely touched. “I know how important abiding by the rules is for your people. So it really means a lot to me that you would bend them a bit to come save me.”
“Always, Ciara,” he said with a gentle smile that softened his face in the most wondrous way.
“So what did you do? You just walked up to the village?” I asked with sincere curiosity.
The sudden embarrassed look on his face and the way he shifted uneasily on his feet took me aback on top of sending my curiosity into overdrive.
He rubbed a spot behind his lower right horn, just above his nape while searching for an appropriate response.
“Not exactly. I was attempting to scope out the area for the best way to get the three of you out when I got captured,” he said sheepishly.
I blinked.
“They used psionic powers against me that I had no way of counteracting. It all but paralyzed me,” he added quickly, sounding a little defensive.
“Right,” I replied pensively. “I remember the Obosian guards on the Gladius almost crash landing on the promenade when they were affected by similar attacks. In fact, Kayog did something that helped them resist it. I’m surprised he didn’t mention it to you.”
Amreth rolled his shoulders and stretched his neck, visibly trying to loosen some of the tension building there while his embarrassment appeared to crank up another notch.
“Kayog did mention their psionic abilities,” he conceded.
“And you came unprepared for it?” I blurted out, my voice laced with disbelief, then immediately inwardly flinched again.
Fuck me! Could I sound more judgmental and ungrateful? My wretched mouth had a tendency of just speaking its mind, which could sometimes involuntarily come across as mean or hurtful.
“I didn’t just go in recklessly,” he said, sounding even more defensive. “I had my stealth shield activated. Considering my scans didn’t reveal any form of technology, other than the deployable lab you were working in, I had no reason to think they possessed powers that could see through it. After all, my people enjoy some of the most advanced technologies out there. I only planned on going in and out quickly and maybe planting a couple of diversions to help your escape.”
“I can see that,” I said in a conciliatory tone, feeling like a total bitch towards the poor male. “In your stead, I would have assumed the same. No one would suspect them of having the type of psionic powers they displayed. In truth, they didn’t use to. This is not a normal trait for the Kreelars. Whatever happened to them a decade ago caused this mutation.”
“What?!” Amreth exclaimed, stunned.
I nodded, my brow creased in a frown. “But please, have a seat. I’m being quite the poor hostess,” I added with a nervous laugh.
He smiled. “It’s okay. This entire situation is kind of surreal. None of us can be expected to act in our usual way.”
After an awkward moment of hesitation, I guided him to the dining area rather than the living room. One side of the table had a wide bench while the others had chairs. I figured the absence of a backrest would be more comfortable to accommodate his wings. He seemed to share that thought as he made a beeline for the bench. Still, he remained standing until I settled down first across the table from him. It was odd that he should observe some of those old school human courtesies.
As soon as I sat, I suddenly remembered I hadn’t offered him anything to drink or eat.
“No, Ciara. I’m fine,” he said with an amused expression when I once more blurted out if he needed any refreshment. “Do not fret so much. I will let you know if I require anything.”
“Okay,” I said, feeling insanely clumsy. This was not the first impression I wanted to give to my soulmate.
“So you were about to tell me about the Kreelars’ mutation. But first, I would know how you are faring,” he asks, his silver-white eyes studying me intently. “Based on the recordings from the Gladius, you were seriously injured.”
By the way his gaze went slightly out of focus, I suspected he was peering at my soul or aura to get some additional information about my current emotional state.
“I’m fine, all three of us are doing good. Thanks for asking,” I replied with a smile. “The Kreelar and their friends fully patched me up. I don’t know what kind of technology their friends have, but it could give the Xurgens a run for their money. And since our arrival here, they have treated us like esteemed guests. They need us… badly.”
“I’m grateful they were able to mend you. None of this makes much sense. What have you found out since your arrival?” he asked. “Aku claims that humans harmed them.”
I nodded grimly. “What happened is truly messed up and the reason why there are strict Prime Directive guidelines. It’s all the more infuriating that this entire tragedy was caused by the very people who should know better.”
“What do you mean?”
“This whole mess started a little over ten years ago. You probably heard about the incident that led the UPO to make contact with the Sangoth for the first time, right?”
He nodded. “Smugglers were stealing some of the rare metals in their mountains. Competition over those rare resources led to some criminal factions battling over that wealth. If I recall properly, the losing faction ratted out the winner.”
“That’s correct. The Timmons Cartel didn’t take well to losing. They figured if they couldn’t harness that wealth, then no one else would. Without them tipping off the UPO, we never would have known of the Sangoths’ existence. Except a lot of damage had already been done to their population. The UPO initiated some diplomatic talks, and the Sangoths consented to allowing some of our scientists to perform non-intrusive studies of their people.”
“And that’s where Elias Jacobs comes in,” he said with sudden understanding.
I nodded. “His team was there for a one-year study. The Sangoths have extremely strong bones, nearly unbreakable. It stems from the mineral residues in the water that streams through their mountain. Jacobs was hoping to figure out a way to adapt it to other species and help solve things such as brittle bone disease and osteoporosis. But that research went nowhere. The Sangoths possess unique genetic traits that allow them to assimilate those minerals like no other species could.”
“But it allowed him to discover that SS12 serum. Or was that a fabrication?” he asked.
“The Sangoths have nothing to do with that serum,” I said angrily. “During that time, two of the doctors on his team decided to have a romantic getaway in the valley by the river. It was well outside of the authorized area. They were having sex by the water after having a picnic. A Kreelar mother and her child stumbled on them.”
“Blast! I’m guessing that didn’t go well?” Amreth said with a frown.
“That’s quite the understatement. They had never seen humans before, but that wouldn’t have been the problem. The five-year-old child went after the food and started eating it. The man noticed and went to stop the child.”
Amreth flinched, no doubt guessing what followed.
“Thinking that he was trying to hurt her child, the mother attacked him and bit him. The couple managed to escape by shooting her with tranquilizers.”
Amreth cursed under his breath. “I’m not even a doctor and I know better than to inject primitive species with chemicals with no idea how they might react.”
“Exactly. She was knocked out for a few hours. The sedation eventually wore off and she was able to take her child back to the village. At first, all was well. But it was the following week that she started showing signs of illness. The problem was that she was a wet nurse for her people.”
“Tharmok’s blood! She infected others?” Amreth asked grimly.
I nodded. “The sad part is that she stopped nursing as soon as the first symptoms appeared. But the damage was already done. A few days after she got sick, so did many of the children she had been feeding. The Kreelars breastfeed their young until they reach the ages of six to seven.”
“And Jacobs’ team did nothing? Did they even investigate the potential fallout of what they caused?” he asked, outraged.
“Actually, they did,” I conceded. “They quickly realized something was off and intervened. Sadly, it was too late for eight of the children who died. They managed to save the mother, Sora, but she wished she hadn’t survived.”
“What?! Why?” Amreth exclaimed.
“Sora blames herself for what occurred then, what has happened since, and what is currently taking place,” I said, frustrated.
“But that’s not her fault! She was merely defending her child. She had no way of knowing the stranger would have passed on some illness to her,” he argued.
“I fully agree with you, but things turned into something much bigger than what anyone anticipated. We’ve only been at this for three days, but everything we’ve discovered so far only enrages me further.”
“What do you mean?” he asked, tilting his head to the side.
“We performed some tests on Sora. And guess what? Elias’s great discovery, SS12, actually came from her. He derived the serum from the antibodies she developed from surviving the disease that the human doctor passed on to her.”
“So it wasn’t the sedative that she negatively reacted to?” Amreth asked, surprised.
I shook my head. “No. It came from the bite, which caused her to swallow some of his blood. But the problem is that whatever she suffered from isn’t the same illness as what is killing the others. Had it been the case, we could have derived a quick cure for all of them. But something else happened.”
“You think Elias did something to their people?” Amreth asked, his expression darkening as suspicion filled his voice. “Could he have made them sick on purpose to further validate his serum?”
I hesitated. “Actually, no. I don’t think he made her sick on purpose. After all, from our analysis and their retelling of the events, it was purely unfortunate circumstances that she bit him and became infected with that disease. The problem is that as soon as he cured her, he left and never looked back. This is a grievous breach of the Prime Directive. The terrible fallout imperatively should have been reported. The Kreelar should have remained under discreet observation for at least five years to make sure that nothing resurfaced.”
“Why didn’t he? It wasn’t like he was at fault for those two foolish doctors breaking protocol. They would have faced the consequences. At worst, it would have been a slight blemish on his reputation, but it wouldn’t have been a devastating blow,” Amreth argued.
“And that’s the part that truly bothers me. The consequences now for being exposed are going to destroy his career. Why risk it? The incredible discovery of SS12 would have made the shame of this situation fade away in a heartbeat. This was ideal timing for him, however tragic as it had been for the victims. There’s something else we’re missing.”
“Aku mentioned that they had to be secretive about this because extremely powerful people would have made things even more tragic had they gone public with this instead of abducting you,” Amreth said pensively.
“He hinted at that as well,” I said with a frown. “Once we have saved these people, we need to get to the bottom of this.”
“Agreed,” Amreth said with a determination that almost made me smile.
He truly was the embodiment of the extreme law-abiding Obosian.
“It’s just frustrating that no one really prodded at some of his inconsistencies. First off, he labeled his discovery SS12, which stands for Simian Serum. Although the Sangoths have some very distant links to apes, we mostly compare them to Yetis. Whereas the Kreelar clearly have simian traits. When asked to describe the species he derived the serum from, Elias gave some random explanation that the illness the creature suffered from acted like a virulent flesh-eating bacteria that not only consumed the flesh at an accelerated rate but also made it decompose much too quickly for them to have any viable tissue that would enable them to identify its species.”
“That’s ridiculous!” Amreth said, incredulous.
I snorted. “Tell me about it. But people were too busy raving about the serum and its applications to really dwell over its origins. And down here, all was well for nearly a year after their departure. And then, that illness came back. But it was different. No one bit anyone, and it wasn’t restricted to a specific subgroup like it had been with Sora and the young she breastfed. Random members of the tribe of all ages and genders started getting sick.”
“Some kind of virus?” he asked.
I shook my head. “No. Whatever it is, it isn’t airborne, isn’t a blood borne pathogen, and isn’t physically transmissible via touch. It’s causing severe headaches and swelling in the brain. It’s almost like encephalitis with the headaches, fever, fatigue, joint pain, and eventually confusion and hallucinations. Both genders get it, but females who contract it after puberty rarely survive. The biggest problem is that it began happening in every other tribe, not just the people here in Bryst.”
“That doesn’t make sense. When Sora first got sick, did she infect a child from another tribe?”
“No. The illness exclusively struck here. So something else happened that is now spreading to other Kreelars, but not the Sangoths. But then, those two species don’t interact with each other. Over the past nine years since the sickness returned—or rather this version of it manifested itself—the Kreelar females have been decimated. They now account for less than a third of their population. If we don’t find a cure quickly, they will become extinct. So as you can guess, we can’t leave. We have to fix this.”
He nodded slowly, a deep frown creasing his brow. “Aku said you can solve it, but even faster with my aid.”
I perked up. “He did. They have some kind of seer who said you would come and that you would help. That first part was clearly accurate.”
“It was. Which means I must help. Whatever you need, it is yours.”
Although his words pleased me, for a reason I couldn’t explain, I felt the need to challenge his motivation.
“Would you still offer your aid if I wasn’t involved?” I asked.
He slightly recoiled and looked a bit offended.
“Yes, Ciara. I would still offer. I may have come here specifically for you, and as your soulmate it is indeed my duty to assist you in every way possible. But I also have a duty of conscience to do right by those in need. Obosians may come across as cold and rigid at times, but we are not heartless. We’re just… stuck up when it comes to upholding the law and following rules.”
“Then you might find having me as a mate quite problematic. I’m the rebellious type,” I challenged.
Although he narrowed his eyes at me, his lips stretched into a subtle smile laced with a hint of provocation.
“Are you now?” he asked in a dubious tone. “It sounds a bit contradictory for an epidemiologist.”
I shrugged. “Those rules, I follow. But others…” I waved a dismissive hand as my voice trailed off.
“Well then, you’ll just have to be disciplined.”
I snorted and gave him an incredulous look, unsure how to interpret his expression, which was the perfect mix of serious with a hint of mischief.
“Good luck with that!” I said with a dare.
“On that front, I do not need luck, Ciara,” he said, his voice dipping an octave in a way that sounded both threatening and full of promises.
My stomach did a backflip, and I suddenly found myself again admiring his insanely attractive appearance. I didn’t know how I felt about him. Physically, he was a billion out of ten. Personality wise, it would take me some time to adjust to him. I just took comfort in this glimpse of his playful side.
Part of me wished that I didn’t know he was my soulmate as our relationship would then be given a chance to grow organically. Instead, I felt compelled to just be swept off my feet because I knew we were meant to be. That would have been fine if not for my stupid excessively analytical mind that always needed to look for the potential flaws that could have bad repercussions later down the road. I needed to relax and just let things happen. After all, he had traveled halfway through the galaxy to rescue me on a leap of faith.
And Kayog was never wrong.
“But on a more serious note, what can I do to help? I am many things, but definitely not a scientist,” he said with an apologetic look.
I smiled. “Actually, your arrival could not have been more perfect. These people do not yet have advanced transportation or communication systems. They do have the equivalent of CBs for radio communication. But as you can guess, that’s far too restrictive for our needs. We must visit the other villages to try and get a better sense of what could be the cause of the illness spreading to other tribes.”
“Of course, I’ll be glad to fly you. Somehow, I doubt Aku would be too keen on letting me take you inside my shuttle,” he added pensively.
“Agreed. At least, not right now. The people here in Bryst have been nice to us, but the other villages have never met a human in person before. Since their only knowledge of us is of how our actions may be the cause of what is destroying their people, I doubt they would welcome a shuttle until we’ve had a chance to establish some sort of rapport. I was going to ride on one of their mounts, but it would take hours to reach our destination. So you flying me would be great, assuming I’m not too heavy?”
I flinched as soon as I stated that last sentence. Obosians were reputed for their strength. I had a healthy weight which would put very little strain on him. I didn’t want him to think I only said that in order to fish for compliments.
The strangest emotion fleeted through his silver-white eyes. “Are you calling me weak, woman?” he asked with false outrage.
I snorted and instantly relaxed. “Not flat out, but I do have to account for the fact that being tall and broad-shouldered doesn’t necessarily mean being strong. There would be no shame in being on the feeble side,” I said teasingly.
“You will soon discover that your soulmate is many things but not weak.”
He opened his mouth to say something else, hesitated, and then decided not to proceed. That had me burning with curiosity. With a certainty I couldn’t explain, he almost said something flirtatious. It sucked to want to court each other but having to tiptoe around because of the serious circumstances under which we met, on top of how unusual our situation was.
And yet, I secretly rejoiced that we got thrown into a relationship like this. There was no greater test for the strength of a couple than to face adversity together. So far, I truly liked his responses to this whole thing.
“Don’t mind if I put all of that to the test,” I replied with a taunt before sobering. “But you might also be of great help on a different front. I understand that Wardens are great hunters. From what Aku has told me, they’ve found increasing cases of wild beasts becoming rabid over the past nine years.”
“About the same time that second wave of illness started!” he exclaimed. “Had this type of rabies occurred before then?”
I shook my head, impressed by his analytical skills. “No. And we suspect that they are linked. Or rather Ernst emitted a few hypotheses as to what the cause could be. But we still need more data to be certain.”
“Hypothesis like what?” Amreth insisted.
“Our preliminary tests indicate no anomaly in their people. But we suspect that it might be the case of a misfolded prion,” I said pensively.
He raised an eyebrow, his face taking on a confused expression that immediately had my cheeks burning. As I rarely discussed my work with non-scientific people—as it usually puts laymen to sleep—I tended to forget to explain some of the notions that were common to me.
“Oh, sorry. Prions are like proteins inside organic things like people, animals, plants, etcetera. But if something contains a misfolded prion—meaning that it’s deformed—and you consume it, it is possible that it will cause catastrophic illness.”
“Consume it? So you think they’re eating something that’s poisoning them?” Amreth asked, looking taken aback.
I nodded. “Like I said, we’re still speculating, but it seems like the most probable theory.”
“If it is in the food, why is it only a small number of people becoming sick? Why not everyone? From what little I’ve seen, they seem to grow food for everyone. I would assume they also hunt as a tribe for the entire village. Or did I misinterpret things?”
“You are correct. However, some people are already immune because they got sick before and developed antibodies against it,” I explained. “For others, maybe they ended up eating from the safe batch. But again, it is too early to say. We could be completely off.”
“Have you tested their food stores?” he asked.
I smiled, feeling stupidly proud of the keen interest that he was displaying as well as the ease with which he was following and asking insightful questions. I didn’t need a nerd, but I definitely wanted someone witty who could quickly think on their feet.
“That’s exactly what we’ve been doing. Unfortunately, no luck so far. But that’s not surprising. If we are correct by assuming that it is a misfolded prion causing the disease, then symptoms can take days or weeks to appear. So if a contaminated batch caused this, it would be long gone by now. Therefore, narrowing down the cause will be tricky. But you could really help us scan the local wildlife for the potential source in the upcoming days.”
“I will be happy to do that. You will be hard pressed finding an Obosian who doesn’t enjoy flying, especially in such a stunning and pure environment as this one,” he replied with a smile.
“Thank you. It means a lot. Pinning down the source is the toughest part of the investigative work. Please bear with me if I become nerdy. Once I start talking about this stuff, I tend to ramble on. So don’t be shy to tell me to shush,” I said sheepishly.
The soft and almost tender way in which he smiled did funny things to me. “Never apologize for being passionate about something, especially not your work. And yours is extremely important. You change other people’s lives for the better. I am honored to be able to help you in this endeavor.”
My toes might have curled a little upon hearing his response. Just as I was opening my mouth to speak, the sound of bells went off. Amreth stiffened, immediately alerted.
“It’s okay!” I said, raising my palm in an appeasing gesture. “It’s just the bell indicating that the hunters have returned with meat. I should go test it for any signs of contamination.”
“Lead the way, my mate.”