Her Alien Protector: A Sci-fi Romance

Part 19

Rigel

Tarak is holding Ava by her wrists, and she is screaming.

I strike Tarak, pushing him away from Ava.

Tarak roars at me. Why won't he get it through his obstinate meaty head: he is scaring my Ava.

I slash at him with my wings, knocking him to the ground.

Oh, how Tarak bellows. My attention shifts to Ava. She is trembling.

Tarak is bellowing and I find it hard to concentrate on what he is saying. "...Both I and the rahoni knew the dangers," he says as if I did not witness her nearly being dragged underground and eaten, as if I am not aware that... I nearly lost her.

"...time for you to step up as her..."

Wait, what is Tarak accusing me of? "As her...?"

"Her mate, Rigel," says Tarak, proceeding to tell me how I am neglecting her.

Still overwhelmed by what nearly happened, I snap my wings around Ava. She clings to me, twisting my feathers; even though it is painful, it grounds me.

I know Tarak is right, but I cannot yet say these words aloud.

I meet Tarak's eyes. "Thank you."

Tarak gazes at me with his slit-like pupils, his tail swishing. His fists uncurl, and his claws hang by his side. "Do not thank me. You, me, and these humans are crew. A crew always looks out for their own. Now I must see my mate. Look after yours," says Tarak as he yanks at the drone cord and flies upward to the Firefly.

With Tarak gone, I open my wings, burrowing my nose in her hair and sniffing her sweet scent.

She's safe, safe, safe.

I shiver, unable to keep my memories of sand serpents at bay. Sand serpents are tenacious, and widespread across the galaxy. When I was an adolescent Archae Bennuidae, our elders warned us to stay away from sand pits where sand serpents were known to dwell. As youngsters, we did not listen, daring each other to get closer. Even now, decades later, the screams of a boyhood friend who got too close and was taken by a sand serpent still haunt me.

So, to have witnessed a sand serpent wrapping its tendrils around Ava and nearly taking her pains me.

Ava might be hurt. I need to inspect Ava, but whenever I try to examine her, she grips my feathers and tries to pull my wings back over herself.

I must entice her, then. I hold her firmly. Gently, I kiss her forehead and cheeks. I leave a trail of kisses, down her neck, over her clavicle, her shoulder, and then down her arm to her elbow and her wrist. Slowly, she uncurls, letting me peel back her limbs.

Red inflamed welts that look like long strings are along the insides of her arms. I prod a patch of skin near an inflamed area, and she hisses. Seeing these marks reminds me yet again how she is only with me because of Tarak who cut her loose.

I examine every tiny mark on her arms. When Ava leans against me for support and her eyelids fall shut, only then do I realize how tired she must be. Time to take her back to the Firefly. She can rest during our journey.

I give her a soft kiss on her forehead, pull her close to me, and fly upward.

***

Tarak and Kayla are arguing at the helm of the Firefly.

"Our trip will be several Earth hours long. I want to examine the plant samples in my lab," says Kayla.

"Quiet, pet," barks Tarak, pulling Kayla into his lap.