Page 4 of Orange Town
I paused. Can he understand me? “You can understand me now?”
He smiled a little. “Yes, I can now understand you. I either did a good job in fixing your sensors or you have a superb voice. All I heard before was gibberish.”
“What did you do to me?”
“Ah, do not worry. I see you’re shocked. If I will speculate what happened to you, someone probably kidnapped you from your home planet. I see from your eyes I am correct.” He pushed up, paced.
I stayed seated and looked up at him as if he’s talking to himself rather than to me.
“If my guess is right, and I’m rarely wrong about this, the explosion that happened a few weeks ago is related. The pirate ship masquerading as a cruise ship blew up just outside our planet’s territory. Another ship showed up and collected all the life pods. Except for one that landed on this planet. Which I believe is you and Zirc somehow are in the vicinity and took you in. Am I correct so far?”
I do not know about the pirate ship, but he is correct on many levels. It's probably true. I nodded.
“If that’s true, then he took you in or you cling to him?” he raised one eyebrow at me.
I think I blushed. How to answer that loaded question? “I ah, I asked him to take me in.”
He nodded. “Yes, I imagine so. Zirc has a way with life forms. He said he detests others, but many people flock to him. He gives off this vibe or energy that calls life forms to him.”
Good to know I’m not falling for him then. He gives off a sense of calm and peace, protection and safety. So it looks like I’m one of many who feels like this.
“Knowing how prickly he is, I’m surprised it took him this long to dump you. And here of all places,” waving his hands casually. It’s like he’s frustrated with Zirc and would prefer him in this conversation. He and I both!
“I followed him to the Blue Tribe, and he could have left you there. But no, he went away, in the same direction as was his mission, but he got sidetracked. And now you’re here.” He stopped and looked down at me.
“I have so many questions for you, Brynn Anderson,” he began.
“Brynn. Just call me Brynn.”
“Okay, Brynn,” nodding his head slightly. “You can call me Roqs. I am Roqs from the Silver Tribe.” He paused, and I felt as if he was about to say more, but he just sat down among the pillows. “I’d been following Zirc for quite some time now. Imagine my surprise when I saw a dead musat along the way. I did not see nor smell any evidence of other beings in the vicinity except for you and him. Do you know how hard it is to kill one?”
Of course, I shook my head.
“Only something powerful would trigger Zirc’s beast to appear. Only a horde can defeat a musat. Often when we encounter one, we run. Never do we face it head on. Especially when one is alone. Unless you tell me your kind also has a beast inside them?”
“No,” I vehemently denied it. Shaking my head. No beast. I have seen Zirc’s beast. “It was all Zirc.”
“Hmm, yes, I kind of figured.” He nodded his head in agreement. “You’re too -,” he motioned with his hands. “But what triggered his beast? Was he injured?”
I tried to remember, and I knew they did not injure him in any shape or form during that ordeal. “I, I don’t think so.”
“Were you injured?”
Was I? Thinking back, I said, “Yes, yes, I think I was. But I would barely call it an injury. It was just a scratch on my hand.”
I looked at the said hand. One could surmise it was just a shallow paper cut. “But it bled, and that’s when we ran.”
Something glinted in his eyes that sent shivers down my spine. It felt like he wanted to kill me.
“Who are you, Brynn Anderson? Why would Zirc risk releasing his beast for you?”
Is that why he was angry at me?
“But he did not change into his beast when he was fighting the monster.”
His eyes rounded a bit, then narrowed. “Do not lie to me, Brynn. I’ve known Zirc since we were small. I know what he is capable of and what he cannot. Was anyone else there fighting with you? Only his beast can defeat that monster. But not without help.”
“Well,” I said, thinking out loud. “There was someone there.” I saw his eyes narrowed further, as if thinking I was lying to him from the start. “But that other person kidnapped me. He was from that town. I saw him.” Well, I don’t exactly want to tell this man Ist did other private things to me and Zirc. I don’t owe him that much. “Ist kidnapped me and took me to a cave of some sort.”
