20. Terra
TERRA
The Monstrum Market was unlike anything Terra had ever seen before.
It was less like a supermarket and more like an open-air farmer’s market for one thing.
And it was spread out around the forest for another, with different stalls and huts clustered around the roots of the enormous trees which grew in the center of the Monstrum Mother Ship.
“We are not far, here, from our Sacred Grove,” Taurex told her as they strolled, hand-in-hand, through the market.
“The place where the priestesses who worship our Goddess live. The Grove itself is sacred and may only be entered for worship or if one is taking part in a ceremony. But this outer forest is open to the public, as you can see.”
“It’s like a rainforest without the humidity,” Terra remarked, looking around in awe.
The trees here weren’t just brown and green like they were back on Earth.
She saw trees with deep purple bark and pink leaves and others with dark blue trunks and vivid yellow foliage.
There were plenty of other variations too, but even though the colors were much brighter than any she’d seen out in nature on Earth, nothing seemed to clash with anything.
And of course, the glowing flowers were everywhere, though there was also an artificial green sun overhead to provide warmth and light.
“Let me see–I think the vegetable stalls are over here,” Terex rumbled. “There are several things I must buy for my stew.”
He tugged gently on her hand, leading her toward a huge moss-green tree with deep maroon leaves bigger than her head. As they got closer, Terra realized that what she had taken for a collection of ordinary market stalls arranged around its base weren’t really stalls at all.
There were no wooden counters, or metal supports and no plastic awnings or folding tables like she would have expected at an Earth farmer’s market.
Instead, the enormous roots of the tree had risen out of the ground and twisted themselves into counters and shelves, forming smooth, naturally curved surfaces where the vendors displayed their goods.
Some of the roots had hollow places in them that opened and closed like drawers when the merchants brushed their fingers over the bark, and smaller vines grew between them, forming baskets and bins for the brightly colored alien fruits and vegetables on display.
“Oh my God,” Terra murmured, looking around in fascination. “Even the stores are alive.”
“Of course.” Taurex sounded mildly surprised by her amazement. “It would be wasteful to manufacture structures when they can simply be grown.”
Terra laughed.
“You know, back on Earth, saying you ‘grew your store’ means you increased your sales. But here it means that you literally grew your store.”
Taurex frowned thoughtfully.
“Well, yes. Which is much more sensible.”
“Of course it is.” Terra smiled up at him. “I’m starting to understand why you think most things humans do are unnecessarily complicated.”
“I have been dealing with your tax laws for three Earth years,” he reminded her gravely. “I believe I have ample evidence.”
Terra burst out laughing and Taurex’s mouth curved into a pleased smile, which gave her that same little flutter she had been feeling more and more often when they were together.
It seemed to happen especially when she made him smile.
The big Monstrum was normally so serious and reserved that seeing his face soften made her feel as though she had accomplished something special.
The first vendor Taurex stopped to see was a Monstrum who looked vaguely reptilian, with dark green scales covering his head and throat and a narrow crest of gold running from the center of his forehead to the back of his skull.
His stall was filled with vegetables unlike anything Terra had ever seen.
There were round, bright orange objects with feathery blue leaves sprouting from their tops, clusters of tiny silver pods that shimmered like mercury, and long purple roots covered in pale pink bumps.
There were also baskets of what looked like fat, golden tomatoes except that every few seconds one of them gave a faint musical hum.
Terra leaned closer, frowning.”
“Er…did that tomato just sing?” she asked.
Taurex looked where she was pointing.
“That is not a tomato. It is a g’rn bulb,” he said.
“Well, the g’rn bulb just sang, Terra told him.
He shrugged, his broad shoulders rolling.
“It is ripe.”
Terra looked at the golden tomato-thing in amazement.
“So they sing when they’re ready to eat?”
“Yes,” he said simply.
Terra stared at him.
“That is incredibly convenient–I’m so jealous! We don’t have any fruits or vegetables that do that on Earth.”
The green-scaled vendor gave a hissing chuckle.
“Earth produce does not announce its ripeness?” he wanted to know.
“No,” Terra told him. “Mostly you squeeze it and hope for the best.”
The Monstrum vendor looked horrified.
“You squeeze your produce?”
“Well…yes.” She shrugged. “Squeeze and sniff it–it’s the only way to tell if it’s ripe.”
The vendor looked even more upset.
“And you do all this–this squeezing and sniffing–before purchasing it?”
Terra nodded.
“Sometimes. It can be really difficult to tell if its ripe or not, otherwise.”
The vendor glanced at Taurex.
“You deal with these people regularly?”
Taurex nodded solemnly.
“It requires patience.”
Terra slapped his upper arm.
“Hey!”
The vendor hissed with laughter again while Taurex’s golden eyes gleamed with amusement.
“You’re making fun of me,” Terra accused.
“Only a little.” He held his thumb and forefinger apart about an inch, smiling at her.
Terra narrowed her eyes at him in mock anger.
“I’m going to remember this the next time I’m doing payroll. Maybe I’ll give myself a bonus for putting up with your teasing.”
The corners of his mouth twitched with amusement.
“I will withdraw the comment.”
“That’s what I thought,” Terra said, putting a hand on her hip and giving him a sassy look.
Still smiling, she watched as Taurex chose several of the humming golden bulbs. He didn’t squeeze them, she noticed. Instead, he lifted each one toward his ear and listened to the faint note it made before nodding and placing it into a shallow basket formed from woven green vines.
“So besides sounding pretty, what are those for?” she asked.
“They form the base of the stew. They cook down into a thick sauce,” Taurex answered.
“Like tomatoes?” Terra asked, interested.
He frowned.
“Possibly. I do not know the taste of tomatoes well enough to compare.”
Terra considered this.
“You’ve been living on Earth for three years and you don’t know what tomatoes taste like?”
“I have eaten them.”
“And?” She raised her eyebrows.
“They are wet,” Taurex said.
Terra stared at him.
“Wet? That’s your entire opinion of tomatoes?”
He shrugged.
“They have very little flavor.”
“You have clearly never had a good homegrown tomato like the kind I grow in my garden,” she told him.
“Then perhaps you will prepare one for me someday,” he murmured.
The simple statement sent another little flutter through Terra’s chest because the way he said someday made it sound as though he expected them to have plenty of time together in the future.
She pushed the thought away before she could read too much into their “tomato talk” and concentrated on the other produce for sale.
Taurex moved on to a display of long purple roots next. He picked up three and handed them to the vendor, then reached for a collection of bright red pods hanging from a vine along one side of the stall.
“Those are pretty,” Terra remarked, reaching for one as well.
Taurex immediately caught her hand before she could touch one.
“Do not,” he rumbled and she could hear the warning note in his deep voice. “You don’t want to touch those with your bare skin.”
Terra looked up at him.
“What? Why not?”
The reptilian vendor chuckled.
“Those are skarra pods. They are extremely hot.”
Terra frowned.
“How hot? I like peppers and I’m not afraid of a little heat,” she added.
Taurex’s eyebrows rose.
“Trust me–these have more heat than you’re used to.”
Terra looked at the glossy red pods again. They were each about the size of her thumb, tapering into a tiny golden tip. They did look hot, but she really loved spicy foods.
“Are they like jalapenos?” she asked, frowning.
Taurex shook his head.
“I do not know.”
“Habaneros?”
“I do not know.”
“Carolina Reapers?”
Taurex frowned.
“I am unfamiliar with the people of Carolina, but if they must reap these, I pity them.”
Terra laughed.
“No, a Carolina Reaper is a kind of pepper. Supposedly one of the hottest on Earth.”
The big Monstrum looked thoughtful.
“Then perhaps it is comparable.”
The vendor, who had been listening to them, selected one of the smaller pods using a pair of thick leaf-like tongs.
“If your woman wishes to taste it, I can prepare a safe portion.”
“I didn't say I wanted to taste it,” Terra said quickly. “I was just curious about how hot it is. But that doesn’t mean I want to set my mouth on fire.”
Taurex nodded approvingly.
“A wise choice.”
Which, of course, immediately made Terra want to prove she wasn’t a coward.
“Oh, come on,” she said, frowning. “How bad could it be?”
The green-scaled vendor was openly amused now.
“I can dilute a tiny amount with moora cream,” he offered. “That way you can taste the heat without any lingering effects.”
Terra looked at the little red, gold-tipped pepper again and nodded.
“Fine. I’ll try it.”
Taurex sighed.
“Terra—”
“It’s food. I’m not jumping off a cliff,” she said, smiling.
“True–I just don’t want to see you get hurt,” he murmured. “I promised to protect you–remember?”
“I remember, but this is just a little sample–I’ll be fine,” she assured him. “I promise you, I’m used to spicy food.”
“Listen to the lady–let her try the delicious heat of the skarra pods,” the vendor said.
He sliced the smallest sliver imaginable from one of the red pods and placed it on a flat green leaf, then poured a dollop of thick white cream over it.