Page 16 of Veras
“I think you’re right. I need food.” The hunger overwhelmed me, eating away at my insides. It had been a full day since my meal of killer caterpillars, and it had only been a few stolen grubs.
“Will you survive?” His large golden eyes swirled with intensity, obviously, his response when he felt strong emotions. The wave of his feelings battered me, and I lived his agony. “I must protect you, little Earther. At all costs! You have become my newest focus, and I… please tell me I’m not too late.” He scooped me up and ran me through the outpost.
“I’m fine.” I patted his arm. “The damage isn’t permanent, but I haven’t had a good meal in a long time.” I tried to stay as farfrom him as possible because I knew my smell offended him. I’d grown nose-blind, so I had no idea how bad it was.
Gross.
We zoomed through the outpost. It stretched out for miles. It was equipped to house an army. We approached the living quarters.
My heart dropped. It was completely abandoned. There was no way there’d be any food. Maybe Veras planned to hunt for me. But that could take hours. I took a deep breath and calmly reminded myself I’d gone much longer without eating. He must have a plan.
“You will have a meal.I swear this.”
I smiled. I couldn’t help myself. He seemed so upset, and I wasn’t as put off by his dramatics. Not as I got to know him. He felt everything so strongly. It was sweet if you discounted the fact that he planned to let killer tornadoes take me out.One problem at a time.“Thank you.”
We entered a large black room. The stone of the mountain looked solidified, as if they had poured cement into the mountain. No dust or dirt flaked off. He walked over to a solid panel and began tapping on the glass. Glyphs and symbols floated off the machine in holographic images and floated around him as he pushed through to tap the ones he wanted.
“What is this?”
“A food panel. Tell me what you require. I have traveled many worlds and made the mistake of choosing the wrong nutrition. What have you eaten here that hasn’t bothered you?”
“Mostly bugs.”
He paused and his nose slits flared. “By choice?”
“No.” I rolled my eyes. “That’s a delicacy for the Aavvee, and it was my job to liquify them. They don’t have teeth, remember? Most of the time, they forgot to feed me.”
He slammed his fists against the wall.
“Please, stop. I just want something warm. Not spicy, kind of bland because my stomach won’t be able to handle too much.” Myabuelawould be so disappointed by my words, but I couldn’t chance it. No salsa quite yet.
“We have a dish that we feed our young. That has to work,” he mumbled the last part to himself and swirled his hands over a large panel. “But I will try different items to see what you prefer.”
I no longer had enough of the Oro in my system to translate the foods he referenced. The Oro usually gave me an idea of fruit or meat. But now, I had no reference point.
The first meal that materialized was the shape of a football and the consistency of a hairy coconut. Instead of cutting it open, he shaved off the little hairs and had me taste one. After a diet of primarily bugs, I didn’t judge. They sort of tasted like dirt, but it wasn’t terrible.
“These are bland but filled with nutrients. Try to choke a few more down. Here is the children’s dish.” He set a bowl of green, soggy leaves in front of me that resembled steamed spinach.
I grabbed the bowl, ready to slurp it out of the bowl, when he handed me an eight-pronged spork. Blushing, I thanked him. I hadn’t eaten like a human being in years. I jabbed it in and managed to get a few leaves in my mouth. It tasted a lot like yuca, and I gulped it down. Far faster than I liked, my belly filled, and I hadn’t even finished half the bowl.
Veras ate the rest. “The meal is not as fresh compared to what I ate as the brutoo. But satisfying.” He balled his fists. “It has been a long time since I’ve used my hands. I may have stayed in the beast form too long. Its fiery personality hasn’t quite receded.”
He looked over at the dent in the wall. The one his fist had gone through.
Not going there. Focus on you, True.“Veras. Show me how you accessed the food and how to order this.” I pointed at the green dish. “And the football thingy. Please.”
“Why? I can aid you—”
“I don’t know how long we’ll be together.” His words from earlier crashed through my mind. His plan to help the Guardians destroy the planet—over my dead body. Or until I beat feet and found a way home.
His mouth tilted up at the edges. “So strong. Very well. None of us knows what tomorrow brings.” He went through the motions over and over until I repeated it seamlessly.
“Okay.” Exhausted, I rallied myself, knowing I wanted a bath almost as much as I’d wanted a real meal. “Just so you know, we will be revisiting your death wish.”
“Death? Wish?”
“Your plan to, you know, kill me and every other living thing on the planet. Yeah. That.”
