Page 51 of Saving the Alien Chieftain

“Think nothing of it. Say, are you thirsty?” he asks, laughing once more. “Asking a person in the deserts of Nardune if they’re thirsty is like asking somebody in space if they need air!” He doubles over, laughing at his own joke.

I think the sun has cooked this male’s brains.

He tosses a tiny cube of crystallized water into a small machine that hisses and pops like it’s about to explode before it abruptly stops.

“Stupid thing!” The man smacks it with the back of his hand before turning and smiling. “There’s an art to these things,” he declares as the machine jolts back to life again. He takes and unfolds a clear tube of material that catches a torrent of dispensing water.

Watching in amazement, for a moment, I consider tossing him aside to steal the water before civility wins out.

“For you, friend, take your fill. I have plenty more, enough to last a hundred trips,” he gestures towards the large container of water. Relief rushes through me as I hurry over, filling canteen after canteen with the cool, precious liquid. With my last container, I keep refilling and drinking from it. The water tastes like the nectar of the Gods, washing away the parched dryness that has plagued me for days.

“Don’t tell anyone about this, bit of a trade secret.” He chuckles. “But with that machine, I can safely cross the deserts of Nardune, trading amongst the clans where others dare not go. I do alright for myself, assuming I don’t fall into any voiding sinkholes, that is!” His laughter echoes across the dunes.

“Now, you asked about Draxxi. I left there four days passed, traded some Magaxus gems for the most exquisite, softestborack furs I’ve ever laid eyes on. I’ll make a fortune selling them to the Virennix clan…” His blue eyes mist lightly, almost as if his Rush was on him. “Where was I? Ah yes, Draxxi, they are all up in arms about their Chieftain being taken by the Council of Elders, saying they’ll rebel if an alien girl fails the Proving. Some female called Stones, or Boulders, or some such. She’ll need to be tough as a boulder if she hopes to succeed the…”

Pebbles plans to do the Proving! I’ve wasted too much time. I need to save her.

Dropping the canteen, I round on the trader with a burning intensity. “This alien girl, a human called Rocks? Are you absolutely certain she intends to enter the Proving?” I ask, my eyes boring into his.

The trader shrinks back, concern plastered on his face. “Ah, yes, Rocks was the name. I saw her sprinting around with my own two eyes. Wearing some strange golden armor while some warrior with one arm chased after her, screaming abuse. Sad to see it; a pretty girl like her should warm someone’s bed, not going off to die for some lost cause,” he finishes with a rueful shake of his head.

“Thanks for the water,” I state. Turning east, I sprint off into the dunes once more under the twilight of the sun.

“Oh, goodbye, stranger,” the trader replies with a surprised tone.

The Gods have rewarded my kindness, with my thirst quenched and the knowledge I have made the right decision. I push forward with an untiring determination to reunite with my beloved Pebbles. Nothing in this universe will stop me from holding her safely in my arms again.

Only a few more days.

Chapter 19

Roxanne

Archer

Groggily, I pry myeyes open, noticing the bright purple tinted sunlight streaming through the seam of the tent flap. I must have slept like a log, hardly surprising considering how exhausted I was yesterday. The memories come flooding back, and my anxiety surges. Twice, the hydralith had nearly caught me. I remember its snarling slathering maw at my heels as I ran until my lungs nearly burst. My stomach churns at the flashback.

The horrors from yesterday replaying in my mind prompt me to touch my cheek. I breathe a sigh of relief. The swelling from the vipertail sting has gone down, and some feeling has returned. I didn’t know if I’d ever wake up again after being stung by the horrible creature. Some dark part of me almost wishes that I hadn’t. I know that I’ll most likely die out here,but experiencing the mind-numbing vicious fear of nearly being eaten is too much to bear.

Can I just lay here safe in my tree? The rational part of my mind tells me it’s impossible, but the emotionally terrified part wants me to go back to sleep.

Come on, Roxy, I can do this!

Can I really go back out there? I haven’t even seen the worst of the monsters yet.

But I can’t stay here. I’ll starve or an arrohawk will attack.

Then there’s the other Prospects too, and they’re more dangerous than the beasts that inhabit this forest.

“I can’t leave Krogoth,” I say, my voice barely a whisper. That bastard Zyraxis taunted me, saying he had put Krogoth in a dark pit. The memory makes my blood boil, the anger causing me to rouse myself upright. “I don’t care what happens to me. I’m not going to give up,” I reaffirm loudly as I reach into my pack for some boracks milk and the notorious bars.

I quickly eat and drink, barely registering the taste at all, my mind focused on the task ahead. I need to keep heading north. Because of the exoenhancer armor, I’ve already covered a lot of distance. Xandor and Rylar had mentioned seven days, but at my current rate, hopefully I’ll reach the temple a few days sooner.Assuming I can avoid any more trouble.

Hastily, I pack up my tent and other items, stuffing them back into my leather pack. From my branch, I’m relieved to see the clear skies of Klendathor overhead, the sun’s warmth pleasantly caressing my face.Thank god it’s not raining.With practiced precision, I leap down the branches, descending the tree.

Reaching the ground, I gasp in shock, noticing the remains of the hydralith. A swarm of strange insects with large mandibles the size of fingers are busily consuming the flesh of the beast from the ground up. Their chitinous bodies coalesce together like a sea of riving black and purple. The sight of them devouringthe beast combined with the clanking of their mandibles almost turns my stomach. With only a couple more bars and one canteen of boracks milk left, I decide to cut some chunks of meat from the undisturbed flanks of the hydralith.

While I was training with Xandor, he managed to hunt down a razorbill using only his bare hands. I recalled him tossing the blooded carcass at my feet, its dead eyes staring at me as if in accusation. “You’re going to need to eat,” Xandor had said, and he was right.

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