Page 6

Lisa

T he Snowscape den is a giant cave. It sits on top of the plateau, carved into the mountain behind it at the top of the cliff. I keep my arm around Katie as we follow Juk and one of the others into the cave. Melanie stays close beside me. We pass a large circle of stones just outside the front of the cave, the outline of a large bonfire. There are drums set to one side next to three crude, carved stone stools.

I am surprised by the enormity of it as we are led inside. The tall rock walls carve upward towards a high ceiling. From far above there are scatters of light, cracks and crevices in the mountain above us. The smoke from a central fire trails up and out of sight, leaving the air crisp and clean inside. A few Celetans wave at us from where they sit on the stone steps leading down to the fire pit.

While I expected a primitive cave, this is not what I pictured. As they call it a “den,” I imagined everyone would be huddled together on the floor in a big pile. Maybe I pictured them living as wolves, preferring that form over their other. But instead, I find myself a bit impressed.

There is a blue hot spring glowing off to the left behind the fire. And all around, trailing down further into the cave, are smaller carved out living spaces. One does not picture individual homes when thinking of a wolf pack. There are no wolves on Gragon 6, but there are other animals that live in a similar hierarchy.

Three young toddling children go running to someone behind us. I glance over my shoulder and see one of our travel companions scoop up all three and swing them around in the air. Their shrieks and giggles echo through the cave. Despite how angry I want to be, despite how annoyed I am we need to wait another day to go rescue the others, the sight is heartwarming. It calms something in me, and a smile threatens to spread across my face.

A female Celetan follows the children. She smiles and nods her head at us but keeps a respectable distance as she catches up. The male—Amble, I think his name is? I remember it being something unusual—leans down and places a kiss on her cheek. He hands her one of the three children, and they begin talking in their language. They glance over to us and it’s no mystery what they’re talking about.

“Come, this way,” Juk says. I take my eyes off the couple and glance over at him. His eyes find mine immediately, and there is a brief flash of light in the gem on his forehead. I want to blame it on a reflective light somewhere, but it’s not the first time I’ve seen it happen. Evie might be fine with settling down here, finding love in seven days, but I’m not . I won’t .

“Where are you taking us?” Katie whispers. Her voice cuts through my thoughts and startles me in its softness. Something in Juk’s expression softens as he looks at her, at the fear and uncertainty in her eyes.

“To the healer. She will want to ensure you’re unharmed,” he explains.

I want to argue that we’re fine. That we’re not the ones who need the healer, but those in the cargo hold will. There was only one chair in there with a seatbelt. Gabby was strapped to it last I saw, and for all we know, she could be the only one alive. With her injured leg, I do not think she would last long. It’s only by a miracle that the others would have survived with nothing to hold on to.

But then Katie nods her head and starts to move forward. And I remember she collapsed when she first tried to stand after the crash. She’s been acting fine ever since, but maybe she’s been hiding her pain, trying to stay strong so she can find her sister.

I nod and Juk leads us past a row of dwellings. There are even some on a second level, like an apartment building. Some have hides stretched across the entrances as makeshift doors, while others have the hides tied back with leather strips.

As we walk, a pack of wolf-life dogs come running up to us. They are much smaller than the Celetans in their wolf form, but larger than any canine I know of on Gragon 6. They’re white, with only one tail and two eyes. One jumps up on Melanie and its long, purple tongue gives her a fierce lick.

“Yeck!” she squeals. Brex, the short-haired Celetan, laughs and calls the creature off her. He rubs its head, where I notice two spindly blue horns protruding out of its fur. Melanie glares at the thing. Brex doesn’t notice. He continues to rub the creature’s head between his hands in a very familiar owner-and-beloved-pet motion, and then he turns and flashes Melanie a smile.

“What are those?” Katie asks quietly. I know she’s mentally adding the animal to the tally of creatures in her head.

“They are lupens,” Brex says with a smile. The lupen barks in response. It sounds a bit like a honk, much different than the sounds the Celetans were making earlier in their wolf form. “This is Beska.”

Beska barks again at her name. There are three others hanging around her, all a smaller size. Her pups or wards.

Juk leads on, and I squeeze past the horde of lupens. Katie continues to cling to my arms, but there is a spark of fascination in her eyes as she watches the group of animals run off.

“Does everyone have a lupen companion?” Katie asks.

Juk shakes his head. “No, not everyone.”

We stop in front of one of the smaller cave dwellings. The leather flap is tied back, welcoming us inside. Before we even step a foot in, a woman pops her head out of the cave. She smiles brightly at us, the gem on her forehead shimmering. She is a foot shorter than Juk, and yet she still towers over me. If she is considered short among her people, I wonder how obscure our little group looks.

The woman turns and speaks to Juk in their native language. She looks a few years older than us, maybe late 20s by Terran terms. Her long, white hair is pulled back into various braids, and she wears a leather tunic over a set of leather leggings. Her light blue eyes sparkle with excitement as she turns to us and beckons us into her home.

“This is Nyfer,” Juk explains as we enter the smaller cave.

There is a small, warm fire crackling to our left. Shelves are carved into the stone in a small alcove near the back, and there are four distinct beds made from piles of fur. Nyfer reaches out towards us, gesturing towards the bed closest to the fire.

“She would like to examine you,” Juk explains.

Katie squeezes my arm tighter. Melanie makes no effort to move. I sigh and untangle myself from Katie’s grasp as I move forward. Best to get this over with so we can move on with the preparations to rescue the others.

I sit down on the bed of furs. Nyfer kneels beside me.

“ Syht sy Leesa ,” Juk says.

“ Lee-eesa ,” Nyfer tries. I nod. It’s good enough.

With gentle, blue hands, she reaches out to me. She rolls up one of my sleeves and places her hands on my arm. They are surprisingly warm, and instantly I feel comforted. It’s the weirdest sensation. I can feel my heartbeat calm, and for a moment, the echoes of Chunhua and Delphine’s death disappear from my mind. It is clear and free from the trauma.

The gem on her head sparkles. As I watch her close her eyes and the gem sparkle more, as I sneak a glance over to Juk, and think the Celetans have to be one of the most beautiful alien species I’ve encountered. Blue skin, white blonde hair, with high cheek bones, and mesmerizing blue eyes, the gems are the icing on top of the cake. Even their tails, which they keep in their human form, are a unique feature that is not unappealing.

Nyfer opens her eyes. She turns and speaks to Juk. His eyes stay on me, an intense stare I do not understand. My stomach flips over itself more than once, but I can’t seem to break the eye contact either.

“She says you are uninjured, other than a little malnourished,” he says at last. I stand as Nyfer gently pulls Melanie over next. “She says you should rest for a few days.”

I scoff. “Not going to happen. We’re leaving tomorrow to find the others.”

The side of Juk’s mouth twitches, as though he is amused. There is a chorus of loud shouts outside in the main cave suddenly, but it is unimportant.

“It will take a few days to gather rescue supplies,” Juk says. “Tomorrow is too soon.”

My hand curls into a fist. Apprehension swirls in my stomach, and the snap of Chunhua’s neck echoes somewhere in my head. “A few days is too long. They’ve already gone six days without food or water.”

“You do not know that for sure. Maybe they are resourceful,” Juk says.

“They’re injured!” I snap. “They had no safety precautions when their part of the ship ripped off!”

The room falls silent save for the fire crackling next to us. Nyfer’s hands are on Melanie’s arms, but her eyes move between me and Juk. My heart thumps in my chest, my desperation to get to the others bubbling too close to the surface.

I take a deep breath, willing the anger, the desperation to simmer down. My eyes close as I regain my composure, and when I open them, Juk’s intense stare is still on me. His gem does that brief flash again, and somehow, I know only I can see it.

“Evie is right—there is no leader among all of us. But six of us were kidnapped together. Katie and I come from a group of women who work together, where I am their leader. I am responsible for them. I need to get to the other four lost out there. As soon as possible—please.”

Juk towers over me as he takes a step forward. Nyfer closes her eyes again, her hands still on Melanie and her gem shines. Melanie faces the fire, her eyes lost in the flames as they glow on her pale cheeks. My heart pounds as I stare up, up, up at the tall Celetan, feeling like an ant among giants.

“I shall speak to the alpha and see what we can do,” Juk says at last.

“The alpha? I thought he ran off to save Evie from that deranged wolf,” Melanie mutters.

Juk glances at her before turning to me again. His hand next to his side twitches, and his tails swish ever so slightly. “It seems they have returned.”

Melanie gets the same diagnosis as me: fine, albeit malnourished. She was taken by the Skulchers much earlier than I, so that does not surprise me. Katie is the same, but Nyfer mentions she is recovering from a head injury. A concussion, I assume.

“I don’t remember hitting my head upon impact or anything,” Katie says later. With tentative fingers, she reaches up and brushes her forehead, and then shrugs. “They seem like friendly people.”

We’ve been shown to a cave—hollow, the Celetans call it—where the three of us will bunk together.

I nod, watching Katie carefully as though she may collapse again at any moment. I checked her for signs of a concussion when she first awoke, but there were none. At least, I’m positive there weren’t any. Are all my leadership skills suddenly slipping through my fingertips? Have I failed Katie too?

“I’m very curious about the gems on their foreheads,” Katie continues. “I didn’t want to be rude and ask outright what they are.”

“I’m sure you’ll have lots of time to learn everything—not like we can leave this place,” Melanie mutters as she rearranges a roll of furs given to her. Katie and I have placed our beds close together, but Melanie chooses another spot on the other side of the fire.

I want to retort to her pessimism, tell her that no, I am planning on getting off this planet. I don’t know how, but this can’t be the end for us here. But without a plan in place, there is no point in calling out Melanie’s negative attitude.

Katie and Melanie fall asleep quickly that night. But for me, it is elusive.

My body is restless as I toss and turn, waking every moment that sleep is within my grasp. It makes no sense, as the stacked furs on the floor are the comfiest I’ve been since the Skulchers took us. I didn’t think they would make that much of a difference, and thought I would miss the cold, hard floor of the spaceship. But my body is relaxed and cozy in these furs. If only my mind would relax as well.

With every close of my eyes, I hear the creak of the ship. I hear the screams of the women in the cargo hold echoing as we’re ripped apart and as they plummet to the earth. I hear the snap of Chunhua’s neck, and the blast into Delphine’s back. I hear the whimpers and fear of the women who survive as we’re led into the Skulchers’ ship, the cry from Gabby as she falls and twists her leg, of Katie crying every night since we crashed landed here.

All because I couldn’t protect them , I think. My leadership skills were too weak. Too slow. I couldn’t save Chunhua and Delphine. I was too proud, too excited to be on the only all female-led crew in the Miner’s Association to think about how that news would spread, and what targets that would put on our back. What was a great opportunity for us was a great opportunity for someone else—for different reasons.

And now we’re here , I think as I stare up at the rocky ceiling. Katie sleeps soundly beside me, curled up in the furs. Melanie lies nearby, her back to the fire. She’s been oddly quiet since we got to the Snowscape den. It is a reprieve from her constant negative griping in the ship, but the sudden silence worries me. Apparently, I’ve taken her under my wing as well, without even meaning or knowing to. I will need to check in on her later.

The restlessness gets to be too much. I stand, careful not to disturb Katie next to me. She murmurs something in her sleep but does not stir. The fire next to us is safely banked, the flames low. I stare into the flames for a moment, debating if I should just stay here and sit awake. But my legs want to stretch. I want to move, to be active, to be doing something other than just waiting around.

I slip out behind the leather flap across the cave’s entrance as quiet as possible. The main cave is quiet, but not silent. As I walk down the pathway towards the central fire, there are whispers and snores that come through the flaps of the other hollows. There is no one else out in the large cavern. The water from the hot spring reflects up onto the walls and ceiling, dancing from a self-illuminating source that I do not understand. It’s beautiful and mesmerizing.

I’m tempted to strip and take a dip. The Celetans do not seem to have a problem with nudity. Earlier I spotted people coming and going into the pool unabashed. I’m not shy about my body, but it would be nice to take a dip in private, in the quiet reverie as I try to relax my addled mind and focus on what needs to be done.

I hover near the pool, debating, when something catches the corner of my eye. The flickering glow of flames, not from the central fire to the left of the hot spring, but coming from outside. I recall the circle of stones outside of the cave, and curiosity gets the better of me.

Something sharp and painful hits my gut as I approach the entrance. The feeling comes from within me, a bitter mix of betrayal, hurt, and—dare I admit—jealousy. My shoulders tense as I lean against the cave’s entrance and watch the scene before me.

The two moons are bright and glorious. The larger one—Vekao, I think—dwarfs the smaller one. Vekao is just past being full. Its bright light shines over everything in front of me, and the bright white of its light reminds me so much of Gravion it hurts. I will never see that star again, will never see any of the eight Gragon colonies that circle around it.

Don’t think like that , I spit internally at myself. We’ll get off this planet. We’ll get back to Gragon 6...

But is it even safe there? Look at what happened, a wiser, quiet piece of me whispers. I ignore it.

My jaw hardens as I look past the dancing flames of the outdoor bonfire. I know from its size it’s not nearly as big as it could be. Not as big as it would be if this display were on show for everyone in the pack. This scene I’ve stumbled upon is private. Not necessarily a secret, but something quiet just for the two of them. And it makes me angry.

Axyll and Evie stand before the fire, their hands clasped together. I don’t need to understand Nyfer’s words to know what’s going on. This is a bonding ceremony. A marriage, a uniting, whatever it may be called in this culture. Evie has given up. It’s no longer about survival for her. After we find the others, she intends to stay here.

Not like we can leave the planet , Melanie’s sneering words echo in my head. My heart beats rapidly at the thought. The hairs on the back of my neck stand on end, and something starts to eat me from the inside. Failure. You couldn’t keep them safe. Any of them. Two are dead, and now the rest of you will rot away on this uncharted planet, in nothing but ice and cold .

“I guess we won’t all be cold and lonely,” I mutter aloud, barely a whisper. Evie laughs at something the alpha says, and my blood starts to boil. I defended her actions to Melanie, that coupling with this guy was a means of survival. But it’s clear I’m wrong. It’s developed into something more. Something permanent in Evie’s eyes.

Next to Nyfer is a woman’s name who I don’t remember. One of the elders, I think. She smiles happily at Axyll and Evie. And next to her is Juk.

His bright blue eyes find me the minute I lean against the entrance. And they stay on me as my shoulders tense and my teeth grind watching the ritual. I know I don’t have any say in what Evie chooses for her future. I wish I knew why it bothered me so much. Maybe it’s because I’m hellbent on finding a way off this planet. There must be something we can do to get the ship operational again. This can’t be our end destination.

Or maybe it’s because, deep down, I know she and Melanie are right. We’re stuck here. Even if we returned to Gragon 6, how long would it be before another crew of Skulchers scooped us up? We aren’t safe there.

A shiver runs down my spine as Juk’s gaze on me is unwavering. The moonlight catches his blonde hair, a darker shade than everyone else’s white-blond, but still a bright gold colour. A strand has escaped the usual bun he has swept up on the top of his head, and tickles his cheek.

The woman starts to chant and sing something in time with Nyfer. Juk keeps his eyes locked on mine, and another shiver runs through me. And I know it’s not from the cold.

I push away from the entrance, my eyes on him, just as unwavering. Daring him to break the contact first. My heart pounds and my hands curl into fists at my side. My nails dig into my palm as I force myself to focus on the feeling there, on the scrape as they rip into my skin. Because I refuse to feel the heat that is starting to pool in my core. The flutter of my heart at the intensity in his eyes.

Finally, Juk looks away as Nyfer grabs his attention back to the ceremony. His voice joins the chants, and the low rumble of it follows me in back through the entrance into the den.

I let my shoulders relax as I make my way back to the hollow. Let Evie become united with Axyll. Let her stay on the planet. Let her give up.

It’s the last thing on my mind.