Page 36 of Shadow's Chosen

Nezka smirked. "Was it always so bad before?"

Elise shrugged, taking the canteen from him and another quick swig, letting the liquor slide down her throat before saying, "It's had its moments. I didn't really care for the big squid."

His pupils sharpened to a pinpoint, and his smile grew. "Too bad. I quite enjoyed that part."

Elise arched a brow at him. "Even when your face got blown off?"

"It did hurt a bit."

"I'd hope so. If you didn't feel pain either, I'd think you were a god or something."

"A god of what?" he asked, curious.

Elise reclined in her chair, studying that broken part of his face. It was awful, to be sure. But the rest of him wasn't so bad. "God of death," she said, watching his expression closely.

Nezka didn't look offended. He considered it seriously then seemed to agree. "I'd say that is fitting enough. Even if I don't particularly enjoy death."

Her brows rose. "You don't?"

"Not entirely, no," he said, throwing another piece of broken canvas into the fire. "In fact, I'd say I enjoy life even more. Especially the ritual of creating it."

Elise had to sit there for several seconds to understand exactly what he meant. When she thought she knew, she felt the heat rise in her face again. A particularly explicit image shot through her mind, and she quickly swatted it away, her body growing warm.

He might be an alien to her, but he was still a man, she realized, who still had wants and desires. She remembered all the slightly vulgar—if not flirty—remarks he'd made when they first met. She figured they were only meant to rile her up. They definitely had but she never wondered if they might hold any weight to them.

It probably meant nothing, she thought.And it's not like I would ever consider...

She cleared her throat and took another long drink. "Let's play a game," she said, thinking to change the subject.

"A game?" He looked intrigued.

"It's called 'never have I ever.'"

"Never have I ever...?" he repeated.

"It's a little juvenile, admittedly, but we get to use this," she lifted the canteen, "to play."

His eyes glanced to the bottle then back to her. "All right."

"It works like this," she began. "I say something I have never done before. If you have done that thing, then you take a drink."

"That's it?"

"For the most part. Oh, also I might be lying about never having done something, but I don't have to tell you unless you take a drink. If you do, then I have to drink as well. For example," Elise thought for a moment then said, "never have I ever taken a straight punch to the face." She handed him the canteen, and Nezka took it, gave her a 'seriously?' sort of look, and drank. She took it back and had a sip herself. "See?"

"Seems simple enough," he said.

"Okay, I'll go first." Elise thought for a moment. "Never have I ever...driven a ship."

Nezka took the can and drank. "You really never have?" he asked after.

Elise shook her head. "Jerico and Tom pilot at take-off, then the ships usually just sail on their own till we get to our destination. Sometimes they have to land too."

"So, no human has ever owned their own ship?"

"Some of the richer ones might, but most ships are military or company owned," Elise said. "Do you have your own?"

"Yes, many."

---