44. Plateaued
FORTY-FOUR
PLATEAUED
Vivian
Days become a grueling week, and we encounter no one, doing everything we can to avoid others as much as possible—especially those of the human variety. The moment Syasku comes upon another naga’s territory, and we discover it’s not one of Kyle’s friends, especially that of a naga named Krellix, we backtrack and give it a wide berth. And as we discover more encampments of soldiers, we do the same, praying we’re not spotted.
I don’t want to see more death. I’m still trying to get Asera’s snapping bones out of my mind.
Kyle and Syasku continue taking turns scouting our path, and as we cross a river and enter the mountains, Syasku decides to take us to a plateau that overlooks the vast land we’ve traveled.
This is where it all started, he tells us, here, on this plateau. Where two females from the first mission were surrendered to the nagas for a bit of technology.
Between Syasku and Kyle, I’ve learned a lot more of what has happened here since The Dreadnaut’s arrival. The failed first mission and the demise of the majority of the people on it; the women on board being sacrificed to the natives.
I’m also not the first woman impregnated by a naga.
Kyle’s squad leader had become pregnant by Zhallaix, a naga who helped them time on his previous mission to Earth, and what I had once dismissed as a silly rumor was actually the truth. The news came as a surprise to both Syasku and I, and since then, Kyle has shared everything else he knows.
Knowing there are other women like me out here, has me agreeing with Syasku about searching for the others. Any knowledge those women could give me will be invaluable when it comes to Audrin.
We make camp on the plateau that night, under the twinkling stars.
Like me, I know Syasku prefers being alone. But discovering that Kyle understands more about the current politics of his species inspired something within him. I have never seen Syasku more interested in conversing with someone other than myself.
It took him weeks to even deign talking to me.
I didn’t know what I thought of Kyle at the beginning—being a Yulen himself, one who worked for the military, and who is also close to my mother—but the longer we travel together, survive together, the more he grows on me.
He makes me wonder what my life would have been like if I had not been isolated and under Father’s control. What it would’ve been like if I had known I had a cousin I could trust when I was at my worst.
I vow right then and there that I will never be isolated again.
If my mother is here, I will find her.
The next day we say farewell to the plateau and choose a path that will take us deeper into the mountains.
Except the deeper we go, the worse the ground becomes. Steeper, harder, and covered in rocks, my thin cloth-bound shoes fall apart. Weary from travel and taking care of Audrin, who now wants to hiss constantly and refuses to stay quiet, all I want is to rest. I lag behind when Syasku can’t carry me, and without streams at every turn to drink from or wade into, I’m overcome with exhaustion.
Sweaty and dirty, the higher we travel the more light-headed I become and the more my ears make a popping sound. A headache forms behind my eyes, and following the others aimlessly, I stub my toe on a rock, and stagger.
“I need a break,” I choke out, biting back a curse. Syasku, who is ahead, comes slipping back to take Audrin from my arms while Kyle comes from behind and hands me his water canister. Dropping exactly where I stand, I cross my legs and examine the bottom of my feet.
“I’ll find a place to make camp,” Kyle offers. “We’re going to need to repair your shoes before we continue on. It’s only going to get worse.”
I slump at his words, too tired to tell him that whatever is left of my “shoes” has been ripped to shreds on the rocks behind me.
When Kyle heads off, Syasku curls his tail around me.
I wipe my brow with the back of my hand. “Sorry,” I whisper, annoyed with myself. “I’m just so dizzy. I don’t know why.”
“Do not apologize. The journey has been rough. We should have stopped sooner.”
Too exhausted to argue, I lean against his tail and rest my head on it. As Syasku pulls my feet into his lap, I fall asleep soon after, trusting him to take care of everything while I rest. Audrin’s playful hisses are the last thing I hear before I drop blissfully unconscious.
That night, our camp receives a visitor.
I wake later on to the crackle of a dying fire and a threatening hiss coming from the forest. Across the small flames I see Kyle slowly reach for the gun at his side.
I sit upright and immediately go for Audrin.
Another hiss sounds as I reach for him, and hesitating, I see a large shape appear between the trees. Holding my breath, my eyes shift to Syasku who’s already posed to attack at my right.
Frozen, reaching for Audrin, who thankfully remains asleep, a tense silence eclipses the camp as the shape moves through the trees. Eyes widening, realization hits that we’ve been found by another naga.
I gently pull Audrin’s sleeping bundle into my arms.
No one moves after that, no one speaks. No hisses fill the air. Even the bugs and night critters have gone completely silent.
Shivering from the cold mountain breeze, I hold Audrin tightly against me.
“You are not welcome here,” a deep voice resonates out to us. The ominous tone of it prickles my skin worse than the cold. “This land, this mountain, is mine.” The naga’s words end on a growl.
“We are passing through,” Syasku responds, his voice sliding through the night, nearly as deep, only adding to my shivers. “Come no closer and I will not attack,” he warns.
“Who is that behind you?” the naga inquires, his form lifting, trying to see past Syasku.
Syasku hisses. “No one that concernssss you, Cobra.”
Cobra?
“Humans,” the naga spits. “You have humans with you.”
“They are under my protection.”
“Then you should not have brought them into my territory!” the other one roars.
In reaction, Syasku rises higher on his tail, baring his teeth. “I did not know we had trespassed upon your home. Let us leave and there will be no bloodshed.”
Audrin wakes and immediately hisses in warning like his father.
Syasku and the other naga stiffen.
After a moment, the Cobra slips forward. “Issss that a youngling?—”
Clutching Audrin, I stand. “It’s my fault we’re here,” I call out to him, hoping I take his attention off of Audrin and Syasku. “I got lightheaded and tired and needed a break. If you let us leave, we will not make the same mistake again. I don’t want anyone else hurt on my account.”
The Cobra faces me and Syasku snaps his tail against the ground, the threat clear. The Cobra pauses and looks at him and it’s then I see the outline of a large cowl around his head. But uncertain, my head tilts, drawing the Cobra’s attention back to me.
“What brings you to my mountain, female?” he asks me, his face and body remaining deep in the shadows. “Are you from one of the shipssss?”
Before I can answer, Kyle steps forward and in front of me. “We are, but that’s not why we’re here. We’re—I’m,” he amends, “searching for someone, a couple of someones. Maybe you could help us?—”
The Cobra releases another threatening hiss, inciting Audrin to hiss again as well.
I try gently shushing him.
“—or maybe you’re willing to barter supplies or trade information?” Kyle continues unhindered, indicating a deal with a wave of his hand.
I look at both Kyle and Syasku, finding both are ready to attack at any moment. Afraid, I don’t know who has the upper hand, them or the larger naga in the trees. Either way, I’m not willing to bet on either side.
I need to defuse the situation.
Stepping away from Kyle and back into the Cobra’s line of sight, I regain his attention.
“He’s my mate,” I start, my eyes softening on Syasku as I look at him. “And we just had a baby. We are all searching for something… Kyle there—” I cock my chin “—is looking for two females—human females who are mated to two of your kind. Laura and Celeste, and Krellix and Zhallaix. We’re hoping… they might know somewhere safe where we can go. We came on a ship, but we can’t go back. I can’t go back. We barely escaped with our lives.”
The Cobra goes silent instead of responding. I try to meet his gaze in the shadows but am unable to find it. Every following second that passes is tenser than the last.
“Do you know any of them?” I ask, my voice barely above a whisper.
Slowly the tension in the Cobra’s posture eases, and he slips into the moonlight. Massive and intimidating, his thick tail drags behind him, nearly twice as large and as round as Syasku’s.
Syasku straightens, thumping his tail once more in warning for the Cobra to stay back.
I thought Syasku was huge. The Cobra is another thing altogether. Gigantic, and with a cowl that adds to his height, he’s the biggest creature I’ve ever seen. Daunted, I keep my eyes from dropping to his slit, far too curious about the size of the cock hiding behind it. He looks at me, his gaze sharp and discerning, before sliding his attention to Audrin in my arms.
Then he looks away.
I sag like a weight’s been lifted off of me.
“I know those names,” he announces after his long perusal. “I will share information with you under the promise you leave at first light and bother me no more.” Scowling at Syasku, he turns around and enters the trees. “Follow and keep pace. I will not wait for anyone.”
Kyle holsters his gun and quickly gathers our supplies while Syasku turns and grabs Audrin and me against him. His arms band tightly, and when he squeezes me, I rest my brow to his chest.
“Never do that again,” he breathes into my hair.
Nodding, I blink back tears as he picks me up.
Together, we follow the Cobra into the darkness.