Page 25 of Alien Barbarian's Little Human

“Oh, Gog, I really hope I’m wrong. Even fully armed and equipped Vakutan marines couldn't deal with Legion. I don’t know what hope we would have against it.”

I stop and kiss her softly.

“There is always hope, Beloved. Always. You are my jalshagar. Our souls are entwined for all eternity, until the stars lose their shine. I will not let some gray wind take you from me.”

We return to our hut. I spend the night holding her tight. Neither of us sleeps much, and not for the usual, pleasant reason.

The next day, Ral orders scouts out to search in all directions for Tala. They have strict orders not to engage with him, only to report his presence. I wish I could go with them, but then again, I do not wish to leave Micah, either.

One day passes, and then another. On the third, Dalra loses the battle with his injuries. The village mourns. His body is not returned to the Tree, but burned, by order of the medicine men.

A week goes by, and then another. Chief Ral scales back the patrols. People begin to relax. Some of them even say that Dalra’s injuries caused him to hallucinate, and that some more mundane type of calamity claimed the lives of the hunting party, like a rockslide or sinkhole.

Micah and I are more reluctant to give up our fear. But after several moon cycles pass, and there is no sign of Tala or anything else, even we let our guard down.

One evening, relaxing in our hut, I look over at Micah.

“Let’s do it.”

She gives me a look.

“Still not satisfied? All right, for that matter neither am I.”

About an hour later, I cleared up the confusion.

“I meant, let’s do the ceremony in front of the whole tribe.”

“Oh.”

She kisses me fiercely, and we make the arrangements with Chief Ral. The entire village grows excited and begins festooning every structure with desert flowers and elaborately woven tapestries. Excuses to celebrate don’t come very often, and with Dalra’s recent death everyone could use some cheer.

Our ceremony takes place in front of the Life Tree, two hours after sunset as the moon begins to rise.

Micah is the portrait of loveliness, wearing an elegant silken dress which hugs her curves. Reor spent hours braiding her hair and putting it up with flowers, jewels, and a long golden pin with a dangling tassel.

But it wouldn't matter if she were dressed in worn leathers. She will always be the most beautiful woman in the galaxy to me.

We stand before the tree, hands linked, while Chief Ral performs the ceremony.

“One of the happiest duties a Chief can hope for is to present two souls joined as one. The Life Tree once told Micah his jalshagar would never be born on this world. We all thought that meant he would spend his life alone.”

Chief Ral turns toward Micah and smiles.

“It turns out, only a woman from beyond the stars could be his mate. Let none tear asunder what has been--”

The alarm bell’s heavy tone rings out over the village, causing him to fall silent. My heart sinks, and Micah’s grip on my hands grows incredibly tight.

“Oh no,” she whispers. “Not now.”

“I will make them pay for disrupting our night.”

I hold her tight, and then run to join the other warriors rushing for the gate. The bell continues to toll, until it abruptly ends. Either the sentry ringing it has chosen to join the fight rather than ring the alarm…

Or he is already dead.

On the last bend before we reach the gate, a horrific sound raises the hackles on my neck. Dull thudding noises mingled with screams of the dying. I already know I’m going to see something monstrous when I come around the bend.

That doesn’t prepare me for what I behold inside the arched gate. It almost appears as a spindly limbed insect, but the size of a Drokan. The impossibly thin legs don’t seem as if they should be able to hold it up. Let alone allow it to move.

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