Page 56 of Treasure of the Abyss

His eyes lifted from the naba to meet her gaze, and he hesitated, frowning. “You need it, Macy, notme.”

“You’re not curious at all? Where’s that sense of adventure,Jax?”

“If I eat this…plant, and it makes me sick, whatthen?”

Macy lowered her hand. “I…didn’t think ofthat.”

“It is an experience I will survive without knowing,” he said gently, adjusting his hold on thecontainer.

After eating the remainder of the open naba, she collected a few more stalks and led Jax onward. She found some bitterstock vegetables — which tasted exactly as the name implied — soon after. Though she didn’t want to eat them, they were nutritious, and she couldn’t affordpickiness.

“Oh, look!” Macy exclaimed, pointing up above their heads. The branches of a nearby tree were laden with bunches of winefruit — round, violet-skinned fruits with pulpy centers. “Could you pickthose?”

He eyed her skeptically, set the container on the ground, and rose up on his tentacles. Reaching over his head, he tore down a cluster of fruit. “What arethese?”

“Winefruit. You peel the skin and eat theinside.”

“The same way you remove the meat from inside a hard-shell?”

She smiled and plucked the individual fruits off the branch when he held them to her, stacking them in the container. “Yeah, kind of. They use them in The Watch to make wine, which is a strong, sweet drink that makes you…feel and act differently if you drink toomuch.”

“Differenthow?”

“It makes you…looser, mentally and physically. The more you drink, the hazier your mind becomes, and you lose controlsometimes.”

He scowled. “Why would anyone drink something that dulls their senses like that? Do they mean to endangerthemselves?”

Macy shrugged. “To feel good. It’s not as bad as I’m making it sound. Some people abuse it, and it becomes a problem, but mostly people drink to loosen up and have fun. Being in The Watch isn’t like being out here, or in the sea. It’s safe. We don’t have to all be on our guard everymoment.”

Jax frowned and closed the container, bending to lift it. He stopped before he touched it, wide-eyed gaze focused on something behindMacy.

“What is it?” She turned to look behindher.

A krull stood twenty meters away, staring at Macy and Jax with small, darkeyes.

It was a large creature, its head twice as high as Macy, with a long, powerful neck and slender horns extending forward from its narrow head. The neck was nearly half its height; in comparison, its body and legs were thin and frail-looking. Apart from a splash of red just beneath either side of its jaw, its fur was the deep violet of most of thevegetation.

Jax inserted himself between Macy and the krull, spreading his arms and raising several of his tentacles — making himself look even larger. His skin shifted to crimson, his stripes pulsingindigo.

He’s protectingme.

The thought made Macy smile. She placed a hand on his shoulder. “It’s okay. They’reharmless.”

“It does not lookharmless.”

“It’s so they can protect themselves from predators, or fight each other during mating season.” She trailed her hand down his back, over tense muscles. “Sarina and I used to feed them as kids, until we found out that made them easier targets for thehunters.”

The krull turned its head and bit off a large leaf, keeping one eye on Jax while itchewed.

Jax relaxed, if only slightly, and glanced at Macy over his shoulder. “It is a creature your peoplehunt?”

“Yes.”

He looked back at the krull. “What do they tastelike?”

Macy laughed. “I don’t know how to explain it. Like meat, I guess, but different than fishmeat.”

“If it is not dangerous…we shouldcontinue.”

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