Page 19 of Cozy Prisons (Human Pets of Talin: Origins #4)

Daxus

“She hasn’t come out in three days.”

Daxus jerked and turned around, startled to find Utharium behind him. How had the male managed to sneak up on him?

It probably wasn’t hard. He couldn't remember the last time he’d slept. Earlier, he’d almost fallen asleep while leaning against a clearing bot.

“I know,” Daxus said, resuming his position so he could watch Nataly’s domicile.

Utharium moved to stand next to him. “The other humans are worried about her, but won’t say anything when Palathum asks. We only know because we’ve overheard them talking.”

Daxus sounded an angry rattle. “And yet Palathum won’t force her to see Falkilm.”

“The humans agreed to come here because Iris promised them autonomy," Utharium reminded him. “What would it say about what we're trying to build on Arise if we set aside that promise at the first difficult situation?”

“This isn’t a difficult situation ! This is Nataly’s life!”

Utharium wasn’t moved by Daxus’s outburst. “Except for staying within her domicile, she doesn’t seem in ill health. Hale walks all day, every day. They barely stop to eat, and we aren’t sure how much they sleep at night. Why aren’t you trying to make them see Falkilm?”

“That’s different,” Daxus grumbled.

Utharium sounded a questioning rumble. “How so?”

Daxus didn’t know how to respond, so he remained silent.

“You can’t answer because it’s emotional, not logical.

You’re not trained for that, so all your carefully practiced mediator mavin skills fail you.

” Utharium sounded a soothing rumble. “We all come to this realization eventually. We are not the creatures of pure logic that we’d like to think we are. ”

Daxus refused to admit how accurate Utharium might be. He tried for a counterargument. “It’s not logical to let someone suffer.”

“It’s a complicated situation,” Utharium allowed. “None of us want any of the humans to be unhappy, but we all have to find our own path. We can’t force anyone.”

If Utharium wasn’t going to help him, then the male was useless. Daxus ignored him and continued staring at the door.

“I’m surprised you aren’t at her door, demanding she speak to you,” Utharium commented after several submarks of silence.

Daxus didn’t answer as images of all the ways she’d driven him off rolled through his head. Using the bots and house systems in such a creative way was brilliant.

At first, he’d been furious, but with several rotations to think on it, he was impressed. He wished he could talk to her about it. His only hope was that if he stood here long enough, she'd notice and finally agree to speak.

Utharium must have enjoyed the sound of his own voice because he kept talking, even though Daxus wasn’t contributing to the conversation.

“If you won’t approach, and she’s not coming out, then you’re at a stalemate.”

“Your grasp of the obvious is ingenious,” Daxus snapped.

This time, Utharium ignored him. “If I were in the middle of this situation, I’d seek out the help of other humans. They came to Nataly’s aid when she sent out that message. Maybe they’d be willing to help you if you were able to communicate your concerns.”

He scoffed. “They won’t help me. All the humans hate me now.”

Utharium sounded a negative rattle. “They don’t hate you. They’re upset with you on Nataly’s behalf.”

“The result is the same; they still won’t speak to me,” Daxus said. “I tried to talk to Ula about her bot, and Illea wouldn’t even let me finish my sentence.”

“Go to Sima,” Utharium suggested.

For the first time since Utharium showed up, Daxus felt something other than frustration. “Why Sima?”

“Everyone says she’s very good at talking,” Utharium said. “She might be able to help you find the right words to use with Nataly.”

“Your idea has merit," Daxus said. He looked down the path that would lead to Sima’s domicile and then back at Nataly’s.

“I don’t have any duties at the moment,” Utharium said, sinking down to sit on the ground near the digger. “I think I’ll rest here for a while.”

It was Utharium's way of saying he'd remain where he was to help if Nataly needed it. Having the male stay within sight of Nataly's domicile was pointless and unnecessary, but Daxus was thankful. Without Utharium, he wasn't sure he'd be able to walk away.

Daxus sounded a rumble of agreement. “Thank you, Utharium,” he said, before rushing off.

“Daxus, what are you doing here?” Sima asked without moving out of the way of the door. It was clear he wasn’t welcome.

“I’ve heard you are the person the other humans come to when they need to talk about their emotions,” he said.

He watched her face closely for any sign of a negative reaction. If she expressed pity or contempt, he would leave.

Not that staying guaranteed she’d speak to him, but leaving or recieving a dismissal was preferable to being vulnerable to this human.

“I’m a good listener,” Sima said slowly, as if choosing her words carefully. “Are you here to ask me to talk to Nataly?”

He sounded a negative rumble. “I’m here to talk to you about Nataly.”

Sima crossed her arms and tilted her head. Was that a challenging posture?

“What about her?”

Yes, it was a challenging posture.

“I’m worried about her,” he began. Sima shook her head and stepped back. He spoke fast before the door could slide shut in his face. “I need you to teach me.”

Sima put out a hand, making the door retreat. “Teach you what?”

“Teach me how to see the universe from Nataly’s point of view.”

“Why would you want to do that?” Sima asked. “Aren’t you the one who didn’t think her opinion should matter?”

“That’s not what I meant to do!” he burst out, sounding a frustrated rattle. “Help me understand why keeping secrets and being stubborn is more important than living.”

Sima pursed her lips for a moment before talking. “Do you know what Fading is?”

Her question took him completely by surprise. “Of course.”

“Do you know anyone who’s ever died of it?”

He didn’t want to answer. Was this response the price of her help? He focused his gaze on the wall behind Sima and forced the single word out of his mouth.

“Yes.”

“Can you explain why that’s so hard to admit?”

Sima’s relentlessness would’ve made any mediator mavin proud.

“We don’t talk about the Fading.”

She waited in silence. He knew what she wanted to hear. By the ancestors, this female had no mercy!

“The disease is considered a sign of weak genetics,” he gritted out. “It's believed that it’s better to let those Talins die. What does this have to do with understanding Nataly?”

“We’ll get there,” Sima promised. “Tell me about the person you knew who died of Fading.”

He was still half convinced these questions were simply to torture him.

“She was a friend and coworker. One day, she stopped coming to work. I didn’t find out what had happened until after she died.

Her family sequestered her away. When it was over, they issued a formal notice of death, but didn’t give details.

I had to look it up in the statistics logs. ”

“Would you have done anything differently if you’d known what was going on before she died?”

“There’s no cure for the Fading,” he answered by rote.

Sima shook her head, making him drop his gaze to her face. Her expression was kind, but determined. “I’m not talking about you trying to cure her. I’m asking if you would’ve intervened to provide her with comfort in her last days.”

Giving Sima an honest answer was one of the hardest things he’d ever done. “I would’ve visited her. I would’ve told her that it was an honor to work with her and I would always remember her as effective and intelligent.”

She gave him an encouraging look. “Thank you for sharing that with me. Now I’m going to ask you one more thing.

Let’s pretend you had the cure, but when you presented it to your friend, she refused.

She decided she’d rather have an honorable death than live with everyone knowing she had survived the Fading. Would you force her to take the cure?”

“Of course not! Having the right to…” his words trailed off as he realized what the whole conversation was about. “You’re very good.”

Sima grinned. “I know.” Then her grin faded. “Just so we’re clear, I don’t think any disease is ‘shameful.’ Disease happens. Trying to assign morality to sickness is one of the dumbest things ever. We humans did it in our distant past, and all it did was help keep the disease active and spreading.”

"I never expected to find out that there was an aspect of my present civilization that aligned with something from Old Earth," he said.

“Be careful what you say Talin,” Sima warned him. “Insulting me isn’t going to help you get Nataly back.”

“I wouldn’t insult you,” he assured Sima. “I’m impressed with your communication skills. I asked you to give me insight on Nataly, and you gave me insight on her, myself, and my entire civilization.”

Sima blushed a little. “Yeah, well, it’s always easy to see things clearly from the outside.

It’s a lot harder if you’re in the middle of it.

Everyone can be stubborn when it comes to personal issues.

If Nataly is struggling with something, you can’t force her to face it.

You have to support her until she’s ready, got it? ”

He sounded a rumble of agreement. “Now I do. But how do I convince Nataly of that? I’ve made a horrible error in judgment.”

“Yeah, carrying her to Falkilm while she was asleep was a stupid move,” Sima agreed.

“Not just that,” Daxus said. “I forced my way into her home and told her she was being illogical.”

Sima winced. “That’s bad. You’re lucky Nataly isn’t one to hold a grudge.”

“How will I even apologize? I doubt she’ll let me get close. Last time, she had her domicile attack me. It was effective.”

Sima snorted. “I bet! She’s good at creative programming.” Stepping back, she invited him into her domicile. “Have a seat. I think we’re going to need to bring the community in on this.”