Page 33 of Claim
Before he could say anything to her—and what would he say?—Teq was crowding them, trying to guide them away.“Back to the ship,” he growled.“I’m making sure the credit for the ore is transferring.”
It wouldn’t be enough.
Sil was right behind the big crusher.“Mag.What happened?The sung stones aren’t dangerous, I swear.”
“It’s not your fault,” Mag said, keeping his tone gentle.“There was nothing you could do.”
But his brother only looked more stricken.“It was supposed to save us…”
Mag spun on him, suddenly furious.“I said, not your fault.Saving us wasmyduty, only ever mine.”
“Mag.”June was right beside him.But her little body wasn’t enough to chase away the cold seeping through him.“Let’s go home.”
He took them back to theDeepWander, and even though he knew it was impossible, without the cargo hold of ore, the ship felt empty, drifting on the edge of the station hub.
I’m pretty sure theDeepWander, like, basically floats.So actually it isn’t always a burden.And even if it is, you could share some of it, sometimes.
So June had told him.
The credits for the raw materials weren’t nothing—but it wouldn’t save him.
There was one tense moment where he’d wondered if their shuttle would be detained on the station, if Illgattoa or Szakh had made a side deal with the Dastard to capture him.But the exit code came through.As did another message on his datpad, private this time, with Illgattoa’s ident:Bring me my ship and my orcs.
Strong and brave were his people.Of course the Ajellomenes wanted them enough to lie and cheat.
Confused and uncertain, the crew clustered in the gather-hall, and he knew he had to speak to them again.So he circulated among them, congratulating the various teams on their successes, and he even heard Reji reassuring Sil, “Those fools didn’t know what they had, and they were too afraid to believe in the songs you offered them.For a fair price, no less!Next time though…”
Their apex had failed them.But Mag’s anguish couldn’t quite extinguish his pride.Because despite his mistakes, his crew had changed for the better.The community he’d hoped to join had rejected them, unable to see the prize he’d brought, but now he saw what he’d had all along.They’d brought themselves out of the deepest dark and brought the Earther women aboard, and in the rubble of a sometimes broken universe, his orcs had found hope beyond the coldest stones.And he had been part of that.
Therewouldbe a next time, even if he wasn’t there for it.
So he spoke to them all, praised them for their might and beauty but mostly for their will to go on together.
When they finally began to disperse, exhausted, he made sure to touch each of them, just a hand on a squared shoulder or a gentle rattle of his carapace, maybe not the powerful creation of his brother’s songs, but something nonetheless.He wanted his orcs to go to their rest with dewdrop sweet dreams of tomorrow.
He spared only a moment for Teq.The big crusher might be mostly muscle, but since the i’lva had ignited within him, bonding him to his wife-mate, he’d become perceptive beyond even the acuity of his fronded antennae.He would know something was very wrong.
Fortunately, a fierce four-armed hug disarmed him.“You did well,” Mag told him.“Crushing ore into credits.”
Teq returned the hug with bruising strength; just as well orc hides were tough.“There will be more,” he vowed.“This was only our first step.”
When the crusher departed—his hatchling on his hip, still peppering him with excited questions—Mag pulled his brother aside, determined if nothing else to silence Sil’s guilt.“You know that wasn’t a reflection on your work at all, just cruel sabotage.If the Luster was not the place to share your songs, there will be others because your heartsong will not end.”He crooked a finger at Kinsley.“Tell my brother he is amazing.Short, but amazing.”
“Always.”She wrapped one arm around her life-mate.“And next time, we will blow a bigger hole in thePratorim.”
He rumbled his approval at her.
But there would be no next steps, no next times for him.
Of course June was waiting for him when all the rest were gone.
Wordlessly, he opened one arm, and when she rushed to him, the impact of her little body nearly knocked him off his borrowed boots.She’d always had that impact on him, but now he realized it wasn’t a weakness to want.
So he brought her to his quarters, and she clung to him the whole way as if she’d never let him go.
They were kissing when he shoved the door closed, but when they came up for air, she glanced around.
“It’s not much, is it?”he murmured.“I just never spent my time here.”
