Page 16 of Warrior
“How did this happen, George?”
Her voice wavered with shock as she gently lifted his small, blue hand, now bandage free with the extent of the damage displayed. One of his fingers appeared crushed, the crack in the bone visible with most of the skin flayed away. His arm held streaks of dried blood, and his fingers and knuckles were painfully swollen.
“The white rock is very delicate and must be removed from the vein with our fingers. I was removing some from a crater when a rock fell and hit my hand.” The Garoot youngling spoke dispassionately, as though he were studying a procedure not on himself.
“You don’t use tools to excavate the rock?” I asked, curious. In all my experience, fingers—especially youngling fingers—didn’t possess the strength to pull treasure from stone.
"The white rocks are very delicate. Our tools often reduce it to dust.” Ewok explained, wincing as he watched Daisy clean the wound.
“The guards are not happy if that happens,” George added, a faint frown crossing his thin lips.
“I bet the guards wouldn't be happy to have their hands torn up like this either,” Daisy huffed, frowning in concentration as she smoothed a thin, minty, scented cream over the wound.
Ewok glanced at his own pudgy hand and winced. “Only the ones with thin fingers can harvest the stone. The veins are small and hard to reach. That is why as we grow, we are taken from the mines to…. He glanced at George, and their shared look held pain and worry. “Somewhere else.”
Daisy's full lips pulled into a tight line, but she said nothing, focused on the task at hand.
“What is the name of the stone you mine?” I asked. The mining method described was foreign to my experience.
"They only refer to it as the white stone," Ewok grunted.
White stone. My mind ran through every substance mined within a dozen galaxies and nothing fit what the younglings described.
“Ewok, what tunnel were you working in today?” The need to know burned in my gut, the same churning feeling I got on the eve of a battle.
The tiny Kerzak raised curious eyes in my direction. “One of the smaller tunnels the level below the common area. Why?”
“Yes… why?” Daisy looked up from finishing George's bandage, the gold flecks in her hazel eyes sparkling.
I shrugged, trying to make my request innocuous. “Because I want to see what you are mining.”
“I can take you!” Ewok’s broad face lit up, and he bounced on his heels. I took in his stout frame; the sharp angles of his build juxtaposed with a childish air. His eyes shone with innocence, and his enthusiasm was infectious. I knew he was Kerzak, the cruelest, most ruthless, and mercenary species in the universe. This youngling wasn't anything like that. He had already proven himself brave, loyal, and fiercely devoted to Daisy.
"I'm coming too," Daisy announced. Stepping to my side, her arm brushed against mine, sending a surge of conflicting emotions coursing through me. Worry and fear warred with pride and admiration. Every fiber of my being wanted to insist she stay behind, away from danger, but the need to have her by my side proved stronger. Her eyes burned with an intensity that matched mine, and I knew there would be no talking her out of it. With a deep breath, I nodded in acceptance.
George hopped from the stool, his mouth open to chime in on the adventure, but Daisy cut him off, rubbing the top of his large head affectionally. “George, I want you to go to bed and get some rest. You’re hurt.”
The young Garoot made a face of disappointment, but he did not argue.
We moved down the steps single file, Ewok going to the pile of tools in the corner, pulling out a couple of small lanterns.
“You will need to be silent,” George cautioned as he turned toward the dormitory. “The guards often loiter in productive tunnels.”
"True," Ewok grunted. He pulled a long-pointed chisel from the pile, and tucking it into his worn leather utility belt—the only garment he wore.
The youngling led us through a small tunnel just past the common area, then pivoted to the left and down a steep rockstaircase. Every step plunged us further into blackness—any light filtering through the overhead domes dimming away.
On the first step, Daisy stumbled, her human eyes not accustomed to the deep level of darkness. Instinctively, her hands grasped my bicep as she leaned into me, her softness melding against my muscle.
“It’s dark,” she whispered by way of an apology or excuse—I didn’t care which. I was acutely aware of every inch of her highlighted by her scent of flowers and sunshine. Everything about Daisy made me crave her. It was an admission that filled me with delight and shame in equal measure. As my cock stirred in response to my thoughts, I chastised the ornery organ with a sharp wrist tap. I was a Vaktaire war chief. My desires paled in comparison to my duty.
At least, that's what I told myself.
The trek took longer than expected—almost half an hour. The tunnel we meandered through was small, cramped, and cold. The stone no different from that of the upper levels. I was about to suggest we turn back when Ewok’s light illuminated a seam of pure snowy white amid the striations of orange and red.
“This. Here.” The youngling’s voice sounded reverent as he pointed his light to run along veins of pure white. He wavered his beam on an enormous crater in the wall where the vein widened.
“What is that?” Daisy released her grip on my arm and stepped forward, hand raised. “It looks like aspirin.”
