Page 71 of Rok's Captive
When she has drunk her fill, she sits back, exhaling deeply, some of the tension leaving her body. “Thank you,” she says.
Gratitude perhaps. Or maybe she is saying she simply wishes to rest now.
I do her chin jerk motion then gesture to the pool and back to her, hoping she understands my meaning: Rest. Drink. I will return.
Her brow furrows, and I see the question in her eyes:Where are you going?
I mime hunting, making a gesture with my claws that I hope conveys the concept of bringing back food. Her expression clears, and she chin jerks again, though there is uncertainty in her eyes.
I hesitate. The chamber is safe, hidden, defensible. She will be protected here. But the thought of leaving her, even for a short time, sends a twist of discomfort through me.
Yet I must. She needs nourishment beyond what the fire blooms can provide, and the creatures that make their homes near these rocks will sustain us both.
With a final glance at her, I turn and make my way back through the passage, emerging once more into the harsh light of late afternoon.
The pain begins the moment I step away from the formation.
It is different this time—not the sharp, pulling sensation I felt in the cave, but a spreading warmth that builds in intensity with each step I take. Like fire in my veins, flowing outward from my chest to every extremity.
I press on, fighting against it, determined to fulfill my purpose. The dust is alive with small life for those who know where to look—creatures that burrow beneath the dust, serpents that bask on the rocks, and larger prey I will not hunt this sol.
I focus on the hunt, on the familiar rhythm of tracking, stalking, capturing. But the pain persists, growing stronger, more insistent. It is not debilitating, not yet, but it is…distracting. Each successful capture is followed by an overwhelming urge to return to the formation, to Jus-teen.
I resist, gathering more prey than I initially intended, as if to justify the time spent away from her. By the time Ain touches the horizon, painting the dust in shades of amber and gold, I have enough to sustain us for at least two sols.
The return journey is swift, driven by the increasing discomfort in my chest. It is not pain, exactly, but a burning need, a compulsion that grows stronger with each beat of my dra-kir.
I reach the formation just as the first lights appear in the darkening sky, slipping through the narrow passages with ease despite my burden of fresh-caught prey.
As I approach the chamber, I slow, sensing a change in the air—a shift in humidity, the gentle sound of movement in water. I pause at the entrance, my free hand resting against the cool stone.
Jus-teen is in the pool.
She floats on her back, eyes closed, her strange coverings set aside on the stone edge. The water embraces her, supporting her in a way that seems to ease her pain. Even from here, I can see the tension has left her body, replaced by a calm serenity I have not witnessed since we met.
She is…revealed. Completely. Exposed in a way I have not seen before.
Water sluices down the mounds on her chest, her hips, the dark curls between her thighs. Mymouthwaters. Within my pouch, my stem jerks so hard it hurts. If I touched her now, I would ruin her. If I tasted her, I would forget mercy.
I should turn away. Should retreat to allow her privacy.
I do none of these things.
Instead, I watch, transfixed, as she moves through the water with slow movements, careful not to splash, to waste a single precious drop. Her skin gleams in the fading light that filters through cracks in the ceiling, droplets clinging to her like tiny stars.
I have always thought water was the most beautiful thing in the dust—clear, vital, sacred. But I was wrong.
It is her.
The hunt slips from my grasp, forgotten, as I step forward. The sound alerts her, and she turns, startled, her eyes finding mine across the chamber.
She does not scream. Does not try to hide. Instead, she watches me with those impossibly blue eyes, her chin lifted slightly, a challenge or an invitation—I cannot tell which.
I move closer, crouching at the edge of the pool, my gaze never leaving hers. Beautiful. She is…beautiful. The water on her. I have never seen a sight more entrancing.
Her eyes lock with mine—steady, unflinching. There’s a challenge there, a daring glint that holds me captive.
I draw in a breath, catching her scent—clean water, and something uniquely hers. Something wild. It stirs a beast deep inside me, a pull I can’t fight, even if I wanted to.
