Chapter Eleven #2
The demand was tossed over his shoulder, and I had no choice except to obey. My eyes were still irritated, and an occasional cough forced its way up my throat, but I was able to glance around as I caught up to him.
We had passed under an archway into a tunnel with broad stairs leading downward.
I didn’t think we were within the fortress I’d noticed since those walls had been almost black and these looked more like red sandstone.
Once I noticed how many steps were still ahead of us the obvious answer was that he was leading us underground.
My knees were complaining by the time we reached a level area, the walls of the tunnel expanding in a way that left me feeling like I was in the open, but the massive pillars leading up to a stone ceiling made me realize it had to be a cavern.
As large as the hangar aboard the spaceship had been, but without the scent of exhaust, it was awe inspiring despite half of it being hidden by shadows.
The people moving through it, on the other hand, were intimidating. The Morrak didn’t seem to come under seven foot tall, and the majority of the ones passing us were built similar to the two behind me. None looked as massive as Rhydek, but some appeared to be almost his size.
“Stay close.”
I looked up at Rhydek before glancing over my shoulder at the other pairs.
Corinne was being herded toward the far wall with a hand on her back, and Sabine had her fingers locked with her future mate’s, being led toward another set of stairs beside what looked like a drop off along the side of the cavern.
That had to be where the sound of wind came from, and I was curious to look over the edge, but Rhydek was striding across the cavern in a different direction.
Hustling to remain by his side, I looked around as much as I could. There were multiple openings in the wall of the cavern we were heading towards, most with carvings of some kind above them. Morraki were heading in and out, some carrying bags or packages, making me think of a mall.
“Is this a… shopping center?”
Rhydek spared me a brief glance before focusing on our path again.
“No, the Cavern Markets are lower. This is where warriors purchase supplies. Korrvek, thavren, vey’korr.”
I didn’t know what those words meant but Rhydek didn’t seem interested in explaining. He appeared to be in a hurry to get wherever he was leading me, so I swallowed my questions and kept walking.
The tunnel we entered was dark, only lit by patches of something along the walls and what looked like crystals embedded in the ceiling.
I wasn’t sure if the crystals glowed red on their own or if they were only redirecting the sunlight above, but they barely cast enough scattered light for me to see the floor and walls.
With Rhydek’s dark skin, if it wasn’t for his kethra, he’d have disappeared if he got more than a few feet from me.
My brain started turning over the puzzle of Morraki biology.
Bioluminescence made sense if they had evolved underground.
My brief experience with Morrakan’s surface and my current surroundings seemed to point that way, and if they had been pack hunters, a moderate level of control over their kethra would have been advantageous.
Although, if I could see them in the dark, so would anything they were hunting.
I was still thinking it over when Rhydek made a turn and abruptly stopped.
I had to swerve to keep from running into his back, his tail sweeping aside when it sensed my presence instead of preventing me from slamming into him or the wall I couldn’t see.
Grazing my shoulder on the stone, I hissed at the sting of abraded flesh.
Rhydek’s nostrils flared as his head jerked to face me. Even in the dark I could see his brows lowered over his golden eyes as if I’d intentionally hurt myself.
His long fingers wrapped around my injured arm as the door he’d stopped in front of slid open, and he used his hold to drag me through. I didn’t have a chance to question the metal door and datapad within what looked like a natural stone wall before I was distracted by Rhydek’s rumble.
The interior was better lit than the tunnel we’d traveled through, giving me enough light to see the tiny drops of blood scattered across my shoulder.
He was focused on where I was bleeding, and my lips parted to say I was fine, but the words caught in my throat when he leaned down and swiped his tongue over the scrape.
My lungs seized, eyes widening. His tongue was hot on my skin and felt like it had horizontal bumps along its length. It had also been longer than I would have expected and almost forked at the tip.
My core gave a desperate squeeze, warmth pooling low in my belly when he met my gaze while his tongue was still on me. Nostrils flaring, the rumble he emitted changed pitch, and he licked me again before straightening.
“Be more careful.”
I normally would have resented the warning, but my brain was still frozen by what he’d just done. I was fighting off the dirty thoughts that wanted to invade with everything I had and didn’t have the focus to spare to blame him for the collision.
“That can’t be sanitary.”
Blinking up at him, I didn’t miss the way his lips twitched as if he wanted to smirk.
“Our saliva has healing properties. It’s why an alpha licks his mark after biting an omega.”
His mouth opened and his tongue ran across teeth that were sharper than a Human’s blunt incisors.
Shiver rolling down my spine and making my nipples tight enough to hurt, I dragged my eyes away before I did something insane, blaming my reactions on the new hormones flooding my system.
It was perfectly natural to have a visceral response to a male licking me.
Especially when he looked at me like that while he did it.
Rhydek’s attitude might have been prickly enough to make me want to keep my distance, but that took brain power to process.
He was massive and masculine, Human enough for the alien parts to inspire curiosity rather than revulsion, and it had been a long time since I’d been the focus of any male’s attention.
Knowing it was inevitable that I’d have to sleep with him didn’t help.
Looking around, I took in the room he’d brought me into. It was similar to the one I’d spent the last few days in, with brownish-red walls, although these looked slightly rough instead of smooth and the corners were rounded.
The room was oblong, with a seating arrangement to my left, and a table with a bench on each side of it to my right.
The long wall across from us had all sorts of swords and other weapons hung on it, with more on narrow tables beneath them, lit by what looked like medieval sconces hanging from chains attached to the high ceiling.
The scent of leather and pine I’d come to associate with Rhydek was present but faded, and there was another beneath it that reminded me of old newspapers I’d found in my parent’s attic.
Looking past the oversized grey couch, I was startled when I spotted another Morraki walking towards us.
“Shaevrin meyr’kal, Torashkar.”
They had to have come from the doorway I spotted beyond them, bowing to Rhydek as they spoke in Morraki.
With deep green skin and burgundy eyes, they were more alien in appearance than Rhydek, and with their black hair almost hiding their ridges, I didn’t realize they was female until she straightened and I spotted the barely perceptible swell of breasts beneath the loose top she wore.
Her dull bronze markings remained steady, although mine grew brighter. Fingers curling into my palms, I clenched my jaw, preparing myself for the news I’d dreaded. If she was Rhydek’s lover and that was the bedroom beyond her, I wouldn’t be able to remain.
“Taryn, this is Reyla. She assists me when needed. Reyla, this is Taryn, my… korravalryn.”
My brows scrunched and I knew I was scowling at Reyla even if I hadn’t meant to. It wasn’t her fault we were in an awkward situation, nor did I have any real claim to Rhydek, but anger was steadily pouring through my veins, making me tense.
It didn’t help that I didn’t understand the word Rhydek used.
“Your what?”
What she assisted him with might have been more important than what he’d called me, but korravalryn was the word my mind had latched onto as what I needed to know first.
My tone was snappy and demanding, and Rhydek arched a brow as he looked down at me. Reyla remained stiff, standing a few paces away, expression neutral as she looked between us.
“Korravalryn is the word for… a promised mate. It is what you are until I claim you during your heat. Then you become my korravai.”
My shoulders loosened a fraction, and I managed to even out my frown.
Rhydek’s posture was relaxed, his attention on me, and neither acted like a couple separated for an extended period, but I also didn’t know enough to judge.
The Morrak could have been more reserved than Humans and not act the way I expected.
“What did she say to you?”
He’d spoken in Common when he introduced us, so I had to assume Reyla could understand me. The thought made my cheeks heat, but there was something still seething within me.
“I’ve already told you of Shaevrin. Home is the closest translation to meyr’kal. It was nothing more than a greeting.”
My cheeks warmed further, the heat extending to the tips of my ears and spreading down to my chest. I knew my pale skin would be flushed red, advertising my embarrassment, and it didn’t help that my new kethra were also glowing brighter ever before.
“Well-met, Taryn.”
Reyla bowed her head to me, her Common stilted but understandable. Forcing my lips into a semblance of a smile once she looked up, I darted a glance at Rhydek to see if there was a proper greeting I should use, but he seemed to enjoy watching me flounder.
“Thank you, Reyla. It’s a pleasure to meet you as well.”
Her bland expression didn’t change, so I shrugged away the concern that I might have said something wrong. If Rhydek wasn’t going to help, he could deal with any social faux pa I made.
“Anything required? Council skorr, training complete.”
I appreciated that Reyla seemed to be using Common for my benefit, but there were still words I didn’t know and broken in a way that made it hard to follow.
“No. Drazhari.”
Dipping her head to Rhydek again, she turned and strode from the room in a way that made me think of a soldier who’d received orders.
When the door swished shut behind her the tension in my shoulders finally drained away, and I let out a sigh I hoped Rhydek wouldn’t notice, but when I peeked at him the tips of his teeth showed through his grin.
“So glad I amuse you,” I muttered, turning away.
I sensed motion behind me but refused to look his way again, focusing instead on the wall of sharp and pointy objects. It seemed there were similarities between military men that extended even across species and planets.
“Do you wish to bathe, or would you prefer to remain and unpack?”
Grimacing at the wall, I chose the lesser of two evils. It might have made more sense to unpack first, but there was something intimate in placing my things within his home that I didn’t think I was ready for after the confrontation I’d just dealt with.
“Bathe, I suppose. Do I need to bring anything?”
I knew everyone bathed in the River Caverns, and I had to admit I was eager to see the underground river, even if it meant stripping in front of anyone there. If there were any sort of formality or rules to it, I had to hope Rhydek would tell me before we got there and I made a fool of myself.
But I had feeling he wouldn’t, just to watch me squirm.