Chapter 21
I stepped off the landing shuttle, inhaling deeply as the scent of fresh grass and wildflowers flooded my senses. Earth. Home. The familiar aromas stirred long-buried memories — lazy summer afternoons in sun-dappled meadows, or home cooking potions on the stove.
After so many months away, with my two alien lovers by my side, everything had an eerie quality, like stepping into the past.
My eyes landed on a cluster of delicate white yarrow flowers swaying in the breeze. Without thinking, I crouched down and plucked a few stems, rubbing the feathery leaves between my fingers. The earthy, herbal scent transported me back to simpler times.
“Maybe I can still make that soothing tea,” I murmured, tucking the yarrow into my pocket. A pang of longing squeezed my chest. For all its flaws, I’d missed this place.
A shout pierced the air, shattering my reverie. My head snapped up, heart racing.
Across the meadow, two figures dragged a third between them. As they drew closer, I recognized the stern set of Judith’s jaw, Apphia’s wild curls, and...
“Elijah?” I gasped.
My stepbrother had a hood over his head and his wrists tied behind his back, lead firmly by my two sisters.
“What in heaven’s name...” I breathed, rooted to the spot in shock.
Judith involved in such chaos? Impossible. My prim and proper sister lived to uphold rules, not break them. And yet there she was, marching Elijah across the field like a prisoner.
“Delilah!” Apphia cried. “Oh, thank goodness.”
“Unhand me, you misguided fools!” Elijah bellowed, renewing his struggles. “Father will hear of this betrayal!”
The venom in his voice startled me. I’d never heard Elijah speak to our sisters that way before. Whatever was happening, it was serious. I rushed across the field to meet them, and Dave followed, wings flaring out like they did when he was feeling protective. Zarath and Ixeo stood by the lander shuttle, weapons in their hands.
“Judith? What’s going on?”
My normally composed sister met my gaze, her hazel eyes blazing with an intensity I’d never seen before. “We’re saving his life,” she said grimly.
Dave’s eyes were wide with concern. “Why in the cosmos is your stepbrother blindfolded?” he asked, his usual playful tone tinged with worry.
Apphia’s delicate features crumpled as she burst into tears. “The Elders... they’re going to kill him!” she wailed, her melodious voice cracking with anguish.
My heart lurched. “Kill him? No, that can’t be right,” I insisted, even as doubt gnawed at me. “Surely they’d just excommunicate him. The Path has its dark side, but... it’s not outright evil. Is it?”
The yarrow in my pocket suddenly felt like a lead weight. How na?ve I’d been, clinging to childhood memories while my family suffered.
Elijah’s chin lifted defiantly. “I am prepared to accept my fate,” he declared, his formal tone at odds with his disheveled appearance. “Stepfather says we need to cull the herd, as the Covenant demands.”
A chill ran down my spine. Cull the herd? What twisted interpretation of our teachings was this?
Apphia stumbled forward, her tear-filled eyes fixed on the gleaming shuttle behind us. “I can’t believe it’s real,” she whispered, wonder breaking through her distress. “All those stories... they were true?”
Before I could respond, Zarath’s deep voice rumbled with concern. “We can’t simply kidnap Elijah. We could be arrested for such an action.”
“It’s to save his life!” Apphia pleaded, her gentle nature steeling with unexpected resolve.
“What if we go along?!” Judith’s sharp interruption startled me more than anything else thsavingat had happened. I gaped at my older sister, convinced I must have misheard. Judith, the strictest, most faithful of us all, considering space travel?
“Judith,” I breathed, “you can’t mean...”
Her piercing gaze met mine, and I saw a flicker of something I’d never noticed before – a hunger for knowledge, for truth, carefully hidden beneath years of devotion.
“Things are changing, Delilah,” she said softly. “Perhaps it’s time we changed with them.”
5 - 6
I watched in disbelief as Judith turned to Elijah, her usual stern demeanor softening slightly. She took his hand, her grip firm but not unkind. “Brother,” she said, her voice low and solemn, “I promise to help you hold onto your faith if you’ll just get on the shuttle. We can face this trial together.”
My heart raced. Was this really happening? Judith, the pillar of unwavering faith, proposing we leave everything behind?
“But I...” Apphia’s timid voice piped up, her wide eyes darting between our siblings.
Judith’s head snapped towards her, a sharp shake cutting off whatever Apphia was about to say. The silent exchange spoke volumes, and I felt a twinge of unease. What wasn’t being said?
Elijah wrenched his hand from Judith’s grasp, his lean frame trembling with barely contained emotion. “No,” he spat, backing away. “I won’t abandon the Path. This is a test, and I will not fail!”
For a moment, I saw uncertainty flicker across Judith’s face. Then, to my shock, her expression hardened into something I’d never seen before – determination tinged with a hint of desperation.
“Elijah is our prisoner,” she declared, her voice ringing out with surprising authority. “We are requesting transport.”
My jaw dropped. I glanced at Apphia, seeing my own confusion mirrored in her wide-eyed stare. This wasn’t the Judith we knew – the strict, by-the-book sister who quoted scripture at every turn. Who was this woman, and what had she done with our Judith?
“What are you doing?” I hissed, my mind reeling. “We can’t just”
“We can, and we must,” Judith cut me off, her eyes blazing with an intensity I’d never seen before. “Sometimes, Delilah, faith requires us to take drastic action.”
I swallowed hard, torn between the ingrained obedience to my older sister and the growing realization that something far more complex was unfolding here. As Elijah struggled against Judith’s grip, I caught Apphia’s eye. The fear and uncertainty I saw there matched the turmoil in my own heart.
What in the name of all that’s holy have we gotten ourselves into?
Zarath stepped forward, his silvery-purple eyes narrowing as he assessed the situation. “Very well,” he said, his voice cool and measured. “But I must insist on certain conditions for his transport.”
I watched, heart pounding, as Zarath and Judith engaged in a tense negotiation. His formal, precise speech contrasted sharply with Judith’s uncharacteristically forceful demands. Finally, they reached an agreement.
“Get him on board,” I muttered, my nerves frayed. “Before someone sees us.”
As we lifted off, the scene inside the shuttle was chaos. Elijah thrashed wildly, his face contorted with rage and fear. “This is heresy!” he shouted, straining against the restraints. “You’ll all burn for this!”
Judith stood like a statue, her face an impassive mask. But I could see the slight tremor in her hands, betraying the turmoil beneath her stoic exterior.
Apphia collapsed into a seat, tears streaming down her face. “I’ll miss him so much,” she whimpered, her eyes fixed on Elijah. “We were to be married...”
My heart ached for my sweet, naive sister. “Oh, Apphia,” I whispered, reaching out to squeeze her hand.
As we docked with the Voyager, my mind raced. How had a simple visit home turned into... this? The sleek black exterior of the main ship loomed before us, a stark reminder of how far we’d come from our simple life on Earth.
Once aboard, I guided my shell-shocked sisters to a small cabin. “Rest here,” I said gently, trying to inject some normalcy into this surreal situation. “I’ll check on you soon.”
Leaving them, I made my way to the brig, my footsteps echoing in the long corridor. The Voyager’s pristine interior felt alien compared to the earthy scents of home still clinging to my clothes.
As I approached Elijah’s cell, a mix of emotions churned within me—concern, guilt, and a tiny spark of exhilaration at the magnitude of what we’d done.
“Elijah?” I called softly, peering through the force field. “Are you alright?”
His response was a string of furious prayers, each word laced with venom. I sighed, leaning my forehead against the cool metal wall. What have we done? And more importantly—what do we do now?
A sultry voice cut through my brooding. “Well, well. Looks like I’m not the only one with a troublesome prisoner today.”
I spun around, startled, and found myself face-to-face with a lithe Asian woman sauntering down the corridor. Her cropped dark hair framed a mischievous grin, and her eyes sparkled with an energy that seemed almost electric. Beside her, the hulking form of Dave Lonoa towered, his moss-green skin gleaming under the ship’s lights. Between them stumbled a dejected-looking Chokreini man, his iridescent skin a dull, muted purple.
“I’m Mags,” the woman said, extending a hand. “And this sorry sack of alien is Moslu.”
I shook her hand, surprised by her firm grip. “Delilah. I... wasn’t expecting another human on board.”
Mags laughed, a rich sound that echoed off the metal walls. “Oh honey, I’m as human as they come. Just been hanging with the aliens so long, I’m practically one of them.”
As we walked towards the brig, I found myself drawn into easy conversation with Mags. Her casual demeanor was a refreshing change from the intensity of the past few hours.
“So, what’s your story?” I asked, genuinely curious. “How does a human end up escorting alien prisoners?”
Mags winked at me, her hips swaying as she walked. “Let’s just say I have a talent for... handling difficult situations. And difficult men.” She glanced back at Dave and Moslu. “No offense, boys.”
Dave chuckled, his wings rustling. “None taken, firecracker.”
I felt a smile tugging at my lips, the first genuine one in what felt like ages. “It must be fascinating, growing up around so many different species.”
“Oh, it has its perks,” Mags said, her voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. “Let’s just say, honey, that human men pale in comparison to some of the... talents out there in the galaxy.”
I felt heat rising to my cheeks, my mind suddenly filled with unbidden images. “I... um...”
Mags laughed again, patting my arm. “Don’t worry, sweetie. I’ll give you all the juicy details later. For now, let’s get these boys settled in their new home, shall we?”
As we approached the brig, I found myself hoping this wouldn’t be the last I saw of Mags. In the chaos of recent events, her easy confidence and playful demeanor felt like a lifeline to normalcy – even if that normalcy now included alien prisoners and interspecies gossip.
As we entered the brig, the air suddenly crackled with tension. Moslu’s gaze landed on Elijah, who was huddled in the corner of his cell, muttering what sounded like prayers under his breath. The Chokreini’s iridescent skin flickered with a mix of colors I couldn’t quite decipher.
“Oh, for the love of” Moslu rolled his eyes, his voice dripping with disdain. “Would you stop acting like a toddler? And all this nonsense about being gay? Whatever that means. There’s clearly no god, so you can drop the act.”
The crew around us collectively gasped. I felt my own jaw drop, shocked by the bluntness of Moslu’s words. Elijah’s head snapped up, his blue eyes wide with a mix of fear and outrage.
“How dare you!” Elijah sputtered, his face flushing. “You know nothing of—”
Before he could finish, the brig door hissed open. I turned to see Zarath stride in, his silvery purple eyes scanning the room. The moment his gaze landed on Moslu, he let out a gasp that seemed to shake the very walls.
“Moslu?” Zarath’s usually composed voice cracked. “Brother?”
Moslu’s head whipped around, his eyes narrowing as he snarled, “I am no longer the Moslu Korrin you knew, Zarath. That weak fool died long ago.”
But even as the words left Moslu’s mouth, I felt a surge of emotion through my ankra bond with Zarath. Relief, so intense it was almost painful, flooded through me. I stumbled slightly, overwhelmed by the force of it.
Zarath, seemingly oblivious to Moslu’s hostility, beamed at his brother. His usual mask of cool intellect cracked, revealing a vulnerability I’d never seen before. “It matters not what name you choose, brother. You’re alive. You’re here.”
I watched, fascinated, as Zarath took a step towards Moslu. The iridescent skin of both brothers shimmered, a kaleidoscope of emotions playing across their features. Despite Moslu’s harsh words, I could see a flicker of... something in his eyes. Recognition? Longing? It was gone as quickly as it appeared.
“Zarath,” I said softly, placing a hand on his arm. “Maybe we should—”
But Zarath was already moving forward, his eyes never leaving his brother’s face. I could feel his heart racing through our bond, a mix of joy and trepidation that left me breathless.
As I watched the brothers, I couldn’t help but wonder: What had happened to drive them apart? And more importantly, could they find their way back to each other?