30. Trust Issues
THIRTY
TRUST ISSUES
Elena
The farther I get from my parents’ ship, the more anxious I become.
The trees look different, their trunks larger and branches wilder, the leaves thicker, wider, and fuller.
Everything is strange and new after crossing the river.
We’ve turned away from the mountains and…
I don’t like that. My home and place of safety is all but behind us now and I was just beginning to find my footing there.
When we come across the first drone scouts, I’m not sure if I’m excited or terrified at the sight of the military—of seeing a hint of civilization at all.
Lukys is immediately anxious, his sharp gaze watchful as the drones leave and come back.
They intermittently fly over us as we continue east, and when it appears they’re not going to attack or stop us, I stop paying as much attention to them. Lukys, still tense, pricks his tipped ears to their movements every time.
I’m hoping the military at the encampment isn’t the same as the military on The Dreadnaut. I hope the soldiers, at least those who remain, have turned away from Minton Volp and all he’s done.
More drones appear as the lusher, fuller trees begin to thin out. It’s not long before the sound of machines hum in my ears. Lukys moves closer to me, his tail brushing my legs as it sways back and forth. I… find the contact reassuring.
The smells of the forest recede, soon replaced with the reek of human waste and spaceship exhaust. A breeze drifts in and the air is fresh for a moment before it immediately stales again.
“We must be getting close.” Levy points to footprints on the ground. “It’s just gotta be beyond this last patch of woods. This has to be the outskirts of where the fires are, the encampment. With all these drones… It has to be.”
Lukys turns and looks at me, and I frown, remembering his history with Volp’s soldiers. “Are the soldiers going to attack you if they see you?”
“I do not know.”
“You don’t?”
He points to a drone flying by. “They have not attacked yet.”
“Do you think they would, even if he’s with us?” Greg walks through a patch of brush, his heavy boots crushing the small twigs into the ground.
Levy shrugs. “I don’t know.”
“Maybe we should go alone the rest of the way?” I suggest, gripping my pack’s straps.
Lukys hisses. “No.”
“The drones have already seen him. They know he’s coming. If they haven’t shot at him already, I don’t see why the soldiers would shoot at him later unless he tries something. It’s not like nagas haven’t been all over the broadcasts for weeks now,” Levy argues. “Maybe they are open to dialogue?”
Greg places his hands on his hips. “Not all the broadcasts about them are good though.”
“That doesn’t mean they’ll gun him down in cold blood.”
I flick my eyes from Lukys to Levy, then back to Lukys. “I don’t think we should risk it.” I don’t want him to get hurt. It’s true, not all the broadcasts about the nagas have been good. Some have warned they can be vicious, deadly, unreasonable.
Either way, I don’t want Lukys hurt. Or worse, captured and held against his will. It’s one thing going to a camp, it’s another going to a highly militarized one. That changes things.
“I do not plan on leaving your side, Elena. If they do not want me here, I will leave and you will join me.”
My mouth opens and closes. “I know I promised I wouldn’t leave your side either but…” Jenna… “I need to search for my sister. If she’s here… I’ll know…” She’s reasonably famous. “Quickly. You’ll have to let me go, at least for a little while.”
His gaze narrows. “No.”
“Look,” Greg interjects, “we won’t know unless we find out.
There are drones following us, but they haven’t attacked you.
Also, some of the other camps broadcasting have mentioned safety from naga-kind, some have not.
If they don’t want him near, they’ll let us know and he can easily just go back home. ” He glances at me before facing Lukys.
Lukys stares at me. I don’t want to risk his life, but I can’t abandon my sister. She could be here. “It would be quick,” I whisper.
What if Jenna is here, and we could be together again this very evening? What if all three of us could be?
Tearing my gaze away from Lukys’s, my lips flatten before I reopen them. “Let’s try.”
“If you wish, but I will not leave your side.” He unclenches his hands. “I do not mind you searching for your sister, I only mind that you are safe.”
“Then let’s get a move on it,” Levy grumbles. “It’s already evening and I want to be there before nightfall. One night in the forest is enough for me.”
I stare at Lukys as he pushes forward to lead us through the final interspersed trees, my heart thrumming frantically. As we go, I see more signs of human activity. Eventually, I hear voices in the distance.
Pausing at the threshold of where the forest ends, I gaze over a massive circular encampment stationed across a large field covered in spaceships and tents of all shapes and sizes.
Flowing behind the encampment is a river that disappears into the mostly flat, grassy landscape.
To my right, there’s an expanse of tall grass past the forest, while to my left is more of the forest and river.
There are groups of people between the tents and ships, talking and convening. Farther down to my left are several large logging machines, processing trees. Next to one machine is a green and brown naga helping the workers move the equipment.
I peer at Lukys as he squints at them before he glances at me and turns away.
“We have been lonely for many, many seasons. I understand why there may be others that are here,” he says.
“It has happened since the beginning, since the first ship arrived, and the King Cobra, Zaku, as well as other nagas I know traded technology for human females.”
“What? Human females were given to you?” This is the first I’ve heard about this.
Lukys coils his long, black tail. “Yessss. For a hunt among my kind to claim a bride of their own.”
“Wow.” My brows rise. “I never thought Volp would traffic his own kind to aliens, but I can’t say I’m surprised.”
“Damn,” Greg murmurs.
I had no idea so much was happening on Earth.
“Did you participate in one of these hunts?” Levy asks.
Lukys tilts his head at Levy. “No. I did not.”
Licking my lips, I drop my eyes, relieved.
Lukys uncoils his tail and leaves the trees. The drones fly past him and into the open air but remain nearby. As the four of us start across the hilly field, I glance behind me at Greg and Levy, seeing excitement and relief flit across Levy’s expression.
“Hey! You need to go to the processing tent if you’re new refugees,” a soldier wearing an unkempt uniform shouts.
He steps out from several of the larger ships and takes in our group as he walks toward us.
Several people come out behind him to watch.
“Nagas can’t enter through the barricade without special entitlements.
” The soldier eyes Lukys warily before stopping a short distance away, shifting the gun strap over his shoulder with fidgety hands.
He points to his right, in the direction of a giant, white tent on the far side of the field past a dozen ships. Behind the tent is a giant warship.
“What’s the processing look like?” Greg shifts his pack on his shoulders. “He’s not going to get shot if he approaches, will he?” He nods towards Lukys.
The soldier lifts his chin. “He won’t be shot if he does what he’s told and keeps his distance from everyone who does not directly approach him.
If he earns an entitlement from the commander, he will be allowed the ability to barter.
For humans to register, just a simple name, caste class, profession, and number registration—”
“Is it a registry of everyone in the camp?”
Everyone looks at me.
“Yes,” the soldier says. “Everyone outside those of us who have been stationed here by the previous Supreme Commander—”
“Is there a new Supreme Commander?” Levy interjects.
The soldier sighs. Several more soldiers have walked onto the field to join him.
“You can ask your questions at the main pavilion. The best thing for you all to do is to register yourselves and get yourself a cot for the night. The naga will have to stay in the forest.” His brown eyes lift.
“It’s going to be dark soon and nothing happens after nightfall around here.
” He turns to the soldiers behind him and together they walk away.
“Commander Lunteer runs this camp but he’s no Supreme Commander,” he calls back to us.
“The Dreadnaut’s gone, or have you forgotten?
There’s no more Supreme Commander anymore.
There won’t be for many of us ever again. ”
Greg and Levy, seemingly rattled by the soldier’s departing words, shift on their feet. “What do you think he meant by that?”
“How am I supposed to know? We might as well go to the pavilion and find out there.” Levy points to the sky. “Like he said, it’s going to be dark soon, and a cot sounds really nice to sleep on tonight.”
Levy storms toward the large tent in the distance and I share a worried look with Greg. We soon lose sight of Levy between the ships.
“Well, it seems they’re willing to give you the benefit of the doubt, naga.
” Greg rubs his chin as he stares after Levy, his brow furrowed with annoyance.
“At least we can rest easy knowing you won’t be killed.
” He faces Lukys. “Thank you for getting us here. Levy and I wouldn’t have known how to get past the wetlands…
Or how to get across the rivers. So, thank you.
And thank you, Elena, for joining us so he would come. So, are you guys coming?”
I squeeze the straps of my pack. “I need to check that registry.”
Lukys’s jaw ticks and his lips part, a low hiss leaving him. He uncoils his tail out from under him and slides its tip toward me, winding the long, thinner end around my feet. “Are you thinking about sssstaying?”
I open my mouth only to close it and slump my shoulders.
“I… I don’t know? I haven’t thought about it,” I answer honestly.
“Whatever I decide, I’m not leaving my parents’ ship,” I reassure him.
I don’t know why I do… but I feel like I need to.
If our places were switched, I’m pretty certain he’d reassure me.
I like Lukys. I owe him for his help. I… want him. And whether that’s because of pheromones or not, it doesn’t change the fact that I like him. I’m beginning to like him a lot.
“Come with us.” I cant my head in the direction of the pavilion, telling him without saying it outright that I’m going to check that registry. “Please?”
He slowly regards me and I swallow, holding his gaze.
He hisses again but nods and turns in the direction Levy went. I release a relieved sigh. As we continue onward, Greg and I flank his sides. The sun sets upon us and people pause what they’re doing to stare.
We approach the wide-open pavilion flaps revealing a lit interior.
Inside, I see groups of soldiers and people.
Moving closer to Lukys, I grab his arm protectively.
All around us and in no particular order are tents of every shape and design.
We weave around several before we make it to our destination.
Right outside the pavilion, and on either side, are two more tents with enclosed walkways between them. The massive warship towers over all three from behind. Facing the pavilion, the space just inside is cleared out except for several long tables lined with computing equipment and gear.
People move away when they see Lukys.
By the time we reach the first table and the person behind it, it’s nearly nightfall. I can hear soldiers shouting in the distance as well as laughter. Levy is at the table beside me, bent over it with a holoscreen before him, his hand placed firmly on it.
“Naga! Over here,” a soldier, surrounded by several others, calls out from behind us. “If you’re seeking to register and be granted encampment entitlements, you need to come with us. You can go no further into the camp until then.”
I look at Lukys with a frown. His gaze meets mine. He’s unhappy. I squeeze his hand.
He yanks me into his embrace and presses his mouth to my ear.
“When you are done, I will be waiting for you.” He grazes his teeth over my skin and my whole body shudders.
“When you have your sister, you know where to find me. I will be right outside, watching for you from within the woods.” He pulls away, releases my hand, and I’m left bereft.
He twists and leaves, slipping back towards the forest outside. It takes everything not to go after him. Too soon, he vanishes into the shadows of the trees past the hills.
Straightening, I avoid everyone’s stare and approach the first soldier I see. “I’d like to see your registry please.”
Right now, I need to think about Jenna.