29. Alice
CHAPTER 29
ALICE
T he temple's air feels different from anything I've experienced before - thicker, sweeter, carrying hints of incense I can't identify. Davrik kneels across from me on the crystalline floor, his green eyes locked with mine. The priestess moves around us in slow, deliberate circles, her robes whispering against the ground.
"Remember," she says in a voice like wind through leaves, "silence is the path to true connection."
Navi's hologram flickers at the temple entrance. "I'll keep watch outside. Try not to spontaneously combust from all the intensity."
The priestess shoots the AI a stern look, and Navi's image disappears with an electronic chuckle.
Hours pass like water through my fingers. The sun tracks across the sky, painting Davrik's blue skin in shifting colors through the temple's prismatic windows. I notice things about him I never had before - the slight asymmetry of his smile, a tiny scar near his left ear, the way his chest rises and falls with each breath.
My knees ache, but I don't move. This discomfort is nothing compared to what we've already been through together. His eyes never leave mine, and I see everything there - the courier who crashed into my life, the protector who taught me to defend myself, the man who chose love over his entire way of life.
The sun begins to set, casting long shadows across the temple floor. The priestess returns, her voice soft but carrying easily in the silence we've maintained.
"The bond is formed," she says. "What was separate is now whole. You are mates for life."
Davrik reaches for my hands, and I feel it - something new, something more, like a circuit completing itself between us.
"I can feel you," I whisper, breaking the silence at last.
He pulls me close, pressing his forehead to mine. "That's the bond. It will only grow stronger."
Davrik's lips meet mine, and the temple's energy seems to pulse around us. The kiss deepens, and I feel the bond between us strengthen - like roots intertwining beneath the earth. When we part, my eyes are damp.
"Mom would have loved you," I whisper against his chest. "She always said I needed someone who could keep up with my curiosity."
"My father would have respected your determination." His fingers trace my cheek. "Though he might have been concerned about how often you throw yourself into dangerous situations."
"Speaking of dangerous situations..." I pull back, bouncing on my toes. "This planet has an enormous moon and the most incredible forests I've ever read about. We could-"
"Already packed the gear." He grins, that crooked smile that first made my heart skip. "Navi's been mapping the safest routes."
"The term 'safest' is relative when it comes to you two," Navi chimes in from the doorway. "But I've identified several paths that probably won't get you eaten."
"Perfect!" I grab Davrik's hand, tugging him toward the exit. "Let's change and head out before sunset. The spores only glow in complete darkness."
"Slow down, honey." He laughs, matching my pace. "The forest isn't going anywhere."
"No, but my patience might." I squeeze his hand. "Come on, I want to show my husband everything this world has to offer."
"Husband." He tests the word, a sparkle in his eyes. "I like how that sounds."
The jungle canopy towers above us, its purple-tinted leaves filtering the twin suns into a dance of light and shadow. My scanner beeps as I crouch next to a flowering vine that wraps around a crystalline tree trunk.
"Look at this structure," I say, running my finger along the vine's surface. "The way it's adapted to absorb light through these translucent patches - I've never seen anything like it."
"Careful," Davrik says, his hand resting on my shoulder. "Last time you got excited about a plant, it tried to eat your equipment."
"That was one time." I take a tissue sample, tucking it into my collection case. "And I managed to save most of it."
A creature chirps overhead, its call echoing through the branches. My head snaps up, searching for the source. The scanner forgotten in my hand, I step carefully toward the sound.
"Nova's database doesn't have anything close to that vocalization pattern," I whisper. "Do you think it's a new species?"
"Have you started drafting the research proposal in your head already?" Davrik's voice carries that amused tone I've come to know so well. "I'm sure there's an empty patch of jungle nearby that would make a perfect research station."
"Actually, Nova already has a station about twenty kilometers south of here. They're doing some fascinating work on-" I catch his smirk and the way his eyes crinkle at the corners. "Oh, you're teasing me."
He pulls me close, pressing a kiss to my temple. "You're adorable when you get caught up in discovery mode."
"Just for that, you're carrying my sample case the rest of the way."
"As you wish, Dr. Watson." He takes the case with an exaggerated bow. "Though I should warn you, Navi's detected some interesting atmospheric readings ahead. We might need to turn back soon."
"Five more minutes," I bargain, already moving deeper into the jungle. "There's something flowering just beyond those trees."
The luminescent petals unfold before us, each one a masterpiece of evolutionary art. The Lunar Nexus flower - I'd only seen it in holovids before, but nothing could have prepared me for this moment. Each petal catches the moonlight and transforms it, creating a cascade of colors that shimmer like living rainbows.
"It's responding to the lunar radiation," I whisper, my scanner forgotten in my hand. "See how the pistils are extending? They'll only remain open for about twenty minutes."
Davrik's arm wraps around my waist, pulling me closer against his chest. "You're shivering."
"I'm just excited. Do you know how rare it is to witness this? Most botanists go their whole careers without seeing a Lunar Nexus bloom."
The flower continues its dance, releasing spores that drift upward like starlit snow. I lean back against Davrik, drinking in every detail.
"I keep thinking about all the other incredible things out there," I say. "Whole worlds of undiscovered species, waiting to be studied. And we've barely scratched the surface of what we know."
"Would you like to see them all?" His breath tickles my ear. "Every planet in the Athenaverse?"
"That would take lifetimes."
"We have time." His fingers intertwine with mine. "My new routes will take us to plenty of unexplored systems. Might as well have an expert botanist on board to document everything we find."
I turn in his arms, careful not to block my view of the flower. "You'd let me stop to study plants on every planet?"
"Within reason." He grins.
The flower's glow intensifies, casting us in ethereal light. "I could do it, you know. Find something fascinating to study wherever your work takes us. Every planet has secrets waiting to be discovered."
"I'm sure you could."
Davrik turns me in his arms, and his lips find mine. The kiss is slow, deep, filled with promise. His hand cups my face, thumb stroking my cheek, and I melt against him. The bond between us pulses with warmth, and I can feel his contentment mixing with my own.
When we part, I'm breathless. "That was..."
"Perfect?" His green eyes sparkle in the moonlight. "Speaking of perfect, I splurged on quite the honeymoon suite."
"Oh?" I trace a pattern on his chest. "The one with the view of the crystal falls you mentioned?"
"Complete with a private garden terrace." His fingers play with a strand of my hair. "Though we've barely seen the inside of it, what with all your botanical adventures."
"Are you complaining about my enthusiasm for native flora?"
"Never." He presses a kiss to my forehead. "But I did pay for that oversized bathtub with the massage settings."
Heat rises to my cheeks. "Well, when you put it that way... Maybe we should head back and get properly settled in?"
"I thought you'd never ask." His smile turns wicked.