Page 36 of Fated to the Alien Chieftain

“You did, but it’s my turn next,” I promise her, with a smile.

“I was being serious at the beginning,” Pebbles says before tossing the stone onto the dusty ground. “Machsin’s vision has changed me, given me some of her power, I think.”

“Come now Pebbles, two jests back-to-back?” I ask, scrutinizing her face for the truth.

“Swear it on my parents, Krogoth. When we made love, I could feel what you felt,” she says, her eyes loaded with intensity.

A frown creases my brow. “It must be the bond. The Mortakin-Tok might have increased its potency.”

Pebbles shakes her head. “I felt the bond in the vision. It was like a desperate pull when you were in pain. This feels more like Machsin’s gift.”

She must be mistaken.“You can read minds? What number am I thinking of?” I ask.Borack’s milk, borack’s milk, borack’s milk.

“I don’t know...” Pebbles shrugs. “Forty-seven?” she answers.

I chuckle. “No, the answer is Borack’s milk.”

Pebbles tuts “That’s not a number, you big goofball.” She playfully taps me on the shoulder.

What’s a Goofball?“Goddess Machsin would have guessed correctly,” I say, shaking my head mockingly.

Pebbles throws up her hands in exasperation. “I’m not claiming to be the all-knowing, all powerful Godly Machsin, just that I can sense feelings from others.”

“Others or just me?” I ask, staring at her intently, still unsure if she’s being serious.

Pebbles pauses for a moment. “That’s a good question,” she says, with her eyes cast downward.

I take her tiny hand and lead us through the dusty, abandoned temple. “We can settle this when we tell the others the good news.”

A few days have passed since Pebbles and I have completed the Mortakin-Tok. I notified the Council of Elders not long after departing the temple of Lanaisor and everyone else we happened upon once we got back to Draxru. They all congratulated us, although for some I could see the doubt in their faces, having no physical proof there was no way to turn their doubting eyes. But in truth, I don’t care. I have my Pebbles and we know what we achieved and what we went through, and none will dare question me.

“This place looks even bigger, without all the people in it,” Pebbles says as she glances about my empty Chieftain’s Hall. Her hall now, too.

The faint smell of alcohol and sweat still lingers in the air, the residue of the raucous celebrations from Pebbles Proving. I straighten a few of the stump-like chairs, moving them to rest beneath the enormous wooden table that dominates theroom. Running my hand over the hardwood that displays intricate patterns and grains, I wonder how it has remained so unblemished after resting here for tens of thousands of years.

“Wow, look at this one!” Pebbles exclaims, as she runs over to one of the larger trophies hung up on the curved wooden walls. “Its jaw is bigger than you, Krogoth.” She runs her tiny hand over the circular mouth, examining the rows of menacing looking serrated teeth. Until she flinches back, sucking her finger. “Ouch! They’re bloody sharp.”

“Careful,” I place a hand on the small of her back, feeling her delicate purple flowing dress beneath my fingers. “Let me see” I take her soft hand and see the small spot of strange red blood on the end of a finger. “We might need the healing pods for this one,” I jest before kissing the blood away, enjoying her delicious taste.

“You should give me first aid more often. Would have made the Proving a lot more enjoyable,” Pebbles says. We both chuckle before she turns her attention back to the gaping maw of teeth. “What was this thing?”

“That is a...” I rub my chin, trying to recall it. “Sirenaether, native to Nereidica, a water planet. If I’m remembering the legend correctly, many thousands of years ago, the Nereidicans, knowing our prowess as expert hunters, commissioned my clan to hunt and kill this creature that had grown so large and aggressive it would attack their underwater settlements, killing many.”

“Then what happened?” Pebbles jumps in immediately.

I smile, enjoying how inquisitive she is before continuing. “Twenty of our best hunters went with the Nereidicans across the galaxies, which were unfamiliar to my people back then. Once they got to the planet, they set bait, luring the monster. But our hunters were unprepared to fight something so deadly underwater. Half their number died bravely and with honor,their sacrifice allowed the others the opportunity to strike with the fury of the Gods and slay the beast.”

“It killed ten hunters?” Pebbles asks in disbelief.

“So the story goes.”Was it my father who told me this one?I nod. “The interesting thing is, only four of the hunters came back. The others stayed on Nereidica, treated like heroes, almost worshiped and enamored with the planet.” I let out a breath. “Comfort has defeated more warriors than their fiercest opponents.”

“Six of them stayed? Any females? What if their descendants are still there?” Pebbles inquires in a flurry of questions.

I smile, once again smitten by my Pebbles constantly questioning mind. “They could be, but it was thousands of years ago with no contact from them.”

“They’ve probably conquered the entire planet by now,” Pebbles says with a chuckle.

“We aren’t conquerors, merely skilled hunters. Until the Scythians twisted us,” I say, a little more heatedly than I intended.

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