Chapter 50
Peony
Having the thought, 'am I dead?', was probably a good sign that you weren't dead. At least, that's the hope that Peony clung to as, pained, she struggled to return to consciousness.
The first sense that returned was smell. Mostly because it was horrifyingly familiar. Hot metal, oil, and the distinct musk of ratchi.
Definitely not dead. Despite how badly her head throbbed and her heart ached like someone had taken a sledgehammer directly to her chest.
She groaned, turning onto her belly. Realizing when she did so that she was laying on something hard and metallic and oddly gritty. The air was stifling and dry. Not at all what she was accustomed to from the Home Forest.
When she forced her eyes open, it was to find herself looking up at a plain, metal wall that had a single light strip on the flattened edges of the ceiling.
Just like the ratchi designed their corners of the spaceship.
The door was sealed shut, not even a panel on the inside.
It was just long enough for a grown domini male to lay in it, but only about half as wide.
It didn't feel like it was moving, nor could she hear any engine humming.
Laid out beside her, Temnavi was curled into her, one of his little hands resting on her waist like he had instinctively pressed himself against her. He was breathing, though his brow was pinched with discomfort despite his unconsciousness.
He wasn't disturbed as Peony sat up, his hand falling to her lap. She looked around, grimacing as she wiped away the grit on her cheek. When she pulled it back, tiny granules of golden sand dotted her dry skin.
There were no windows in their little box, so she couldn't even see what time of day it was.
But the sand combined with the bone-dry air told her that she had to be somewhere hot and sandy.
It also didn't take much to guess that it had to be that golden desert she knew lay somewhere south of the massive Uritii Krukiin.
And thanks to the anxiety that had flared immediately without Atem's presence the moment her eyes snapped open, she knew it had to have been at least a few hours since she had last seen him.
She looked around but couldn’t find the shirt he had left her. Her hip pouch as well as Temnavi's had both been taken as well. For their combots, she guessed, even as her lips turned up with wry amusement and relief.
The humans had their own fabric and dressmaker. The old man loved getting their pattern challenges and bringing them to life. He also had no problems sewing pockets into their skirts since, though the hip pouches worked just fine, they still liked pockets.
Pockets were, apparently, not all that popular. When she felt for the one in her fluttering skirt that she knew held her combot, she wasn't disappointed.
But when she pulled it out, a frown immediately marred her face. The normally bright blue color had faded to a dark gray that she had never seen before. Worse, when she tried to rub the surface to turn it on, it remained dark and silent in her hand.
Had it been damaged when they threw here in here? They had to have dropped her inside without much finesse. Which would explain why her body ached so much.
Shit! What about her baby?!
Peony's other hand immediately covered her belly, but she couldn't feel anything. She didn't have any blood between her thighs and her belly wasn't hurting – at least, not any more than the rest of her. Did that mean her baby was okay?
She was getting scanned the moment she got back. There was no fear accompanying that thought, except for her baby's safety.
“Peony?” Temnavi mumbled, lifting his head.
“Hey, sweetie,” she reached out, stroking his hair. She was proud to see that the strands maintained the silver color of the metal around them.
“What happened?” He asked, sitting up, cradling his head.
Peony wasn't sure she had an answer for him, but she was saved having to come up with one by the doors sliding open.
She quickly shoved her combot in her pocket as she whipped her head around.
Only to be blinded by the bright light pouring inside.
She wasn't sure if that meant it was still the same day or if they had been unconscious all night.
Before her eyes could adjust and she could see beyond, they shut again. The dimness she was accustomed to was just bright enough for her to recognize-
“Quvi?!” She gasped, shocked.
The Third Guardian turned her nose up at her. “I did not give you permission to address me, you primitive vurick.”
Peony had no idea what that word meant, but the way Temnavi gasped, his purple eyes widening in shock, she could guess that it wasn't good.
Turning to put herself between the female and the boy, Peony snarled up at her. “What are you doing? What do you want?!”
“I want you and your filth off of my planet,” she snarled, lip curling in disgust. “An offworlder adassani? As though it weren't bad enough that an entire group of pre-contact vurick was named vora vakara.”
Peony glared as she bit back the scathing retort on the tip of her tongue that she was sure would earn her nothing.
Quvi grinned, smug, as though she could see Peony restraining herself.
“Not so arrogant when you're reminded of your place so decisively, are you? You are not vora vakara. You are lucky. And weak. And ugly. That our dominani would choose someone like you is an insult to every female domini on the planet.”
Peony had to work hard not to roll her eyes. She felt Temnavi moving against her, reaching through her skirt. Into her pocket? She moved her arm, blocking Quvi's line of sight to him. But the high and mighty Third Guardian didn't actually care about what a young boy was doing.
“I've had the ratchi brought here,” she said, smirking as she crossed her arms. “They're going to take you and that filthy leftover pup behind you back to their home planet of Hr'ssri where you are going to be the prizes for young males earning their scars.
Honestly, the ratchi aren't much better than whatever primitive people you came from, but I can think of nothing more deserving than for a vurick like yourself to spend the rest of your life soaking in the mud of their swamps. Probably spreading your legs for one of their males next.”
Temnavi had pulled out her combot and held it between their bodies. She couldn't see what he was doing – neither could Quvi – but she felt him moving and she reached back, putting her hands around him to keep him close and out of her line of sight.
“Really?” Peony said, smirking to hide her fear. “Petty jealousy? That's what this is about?”
Quvi laughed at her. “No, human. That's just a side benefit.”
“So, that male that brought us here gets the side benefit of fighting Atem. You get the side benefit of getting rid of me. So, who truly benefits here, Quvi?”
“Aren't you just dying to know?” Quvi asked, grinning wickedly.
Clearly enjoying having Peony completely at her mercy.
“I think I might even tell you. Just so you know how completely powerless you really are.
You know, when you and those other, ugly humans came, I really thought it wouldn't be that bad.”
Oh, god. She was monologuing! And it had taken Peony almost no time to get her going. Her ego was out of control. Though, really, that wasn't a surprise.
“But then the male I had my sights on began to lust after one of your kind,” she said, her dark violet eyes poisonous with her anger.
Peony started, surprised. “You were after Atem?”
Quvi scoffed. “Of course, not. He is powerful, don't get me wrong, but he isn't worthy of breeding with me. I wanted a male that was truly irresistible. Powerful, strong, and beautiful. Someone who would give me pups as perfect as us.”
“Er... who-”
“First Guardian Havali! Of course! You think I became a guardian for the thrill of constantly having to look after every useless person this planet?” Quvi scoffed.
Peony was trying to remember who Havali was.
She was pretty sure she saw him at their welcome party when they initially arrived.
She also knew he was there at the Hortii Kristivar.
She remembered a male who was, in fact, incredibly handsome.
She was pretty sure his eyes were black, and his hair ended somewhere past his shoulders, but she didn't think she'd spoken more than a handful of words to the guy when Atem introduced her.
That guy had a crush on one of her friends? Which one?
Wait...
“Hey!” Peony snapped, interrupting Quvi in the middle of a speech about how the only thing humans were good for were their cunts. “You were the one who set me up to be attacked by the ratchi in the market, weren't you?!”
Quvi, who had frowned at the interruption, suddenly smirked. “Clever, wasn't it? Atem didn't even suspect me.”
“Oh, I already know that's not true,” Peony grinned, thinking about Atem's constant paranoia over everyone and how he had nearly attacked the fabric guy when he came afterwards.
But her amusement was interrupted when Quvi grabbed her by the shirt, jerking her up onto her knees, snarling in her face.
“No! You lie! He cannot suspect me. He has no proof! I was perfect when I told him how sorry I was. He couldn't have seen through that! He would have accused me long ago. You're lying!”
The extreme reaction threw Peony for a loop only for a second before realization dawned.
“O-o-oh. You're afraid of him, aren't you?” She asked, a smile forming as Quvi stilled.
“You are. You know you can't beat him. If he came after you, you would lose.
You're only Third Guardian, after all. You can't even beat the Second Guardian, much less the First. Challenging Atem?
That would be akin to suicide to you, wouldn't it?”
Quvi snarled and dropped her, taking a few steps back, her claws jutting upward. “You should consider yourself lucky, human, that the ratchi want you in one piece. Easier to fuck, I would guess.”