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CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Rohanna, the older woman who was the head of the Oraku people, was already across the room and at the door when her guest arrived. This was not the place for stuffy pomp and circumstance, but rather a much cozier, village-type vibe, and Maria felt immediately at-ease.

“Welcome! I am Rohanna, leader of the village, as I’m sure Zepharos told you before you even landed. And you must be Maria. Did I say that correctly? Sometimes the translation runes can be tricky with alien names.”

“You said it perfectly. It’s a pleasure to meet you,” she replied with a slight bow.

Rohanna looked at the even older woman sitting nearby, the two cracking into unexpected laughter. “Oh, dear, there’s no need for that here. But thank you, your manners are as welcome as you are. This is Tikanna, the village elder.”

“I hate being called that,” the woman groused with a chuckle.

“Well, it’s true. Be glad, it’s better than the alternative,” Rohanna shot back, the two women clearly the dearest of friends. Tikanna shifted her attention to the new arrival, wiping her tears of laughter from her eyes.

“It’s nice to meet you too, Tikanna. You know, my grandmother always used to say, you may have to age, but you are in no way required to grow old. It seems to me you exemplify that saying.”

“Maria, eh?” she said with a chuckle, turning to her friend. “I like this one. She’ll fit right in.”

“I agree. A third human come to our village? If I was a superstitious woman, I would think the universe is trying to tell us something.”

“Yes, that we are very good at taking in strays,” her friend cracked back, eliciting laughs from both of them.

Maria grinned. These two were adorable. “And I really, really want to thank you for taking in one more. When Zeph saved me and said he was taking me to his village, I didn’t know what to expect. But now that I’m here, I can easily see why.”

“Saved?” Rohanna asked, her head cocked slightly like a puzzled dog. “You say you were saved ?”

“Yes.”

“By our Zepharos?”

“Uh-huh. Broke me out and got me free. I owe him everything.”

“You’re sure it was Zepharos who did this?” Rohanna asked half-kidding.

“Of course.”

The woman glanced over at the man. “Why, Zepharos, are you blushing?”

“No, Rohanna. Merely flush from the journey.”

“Oh, I see,” she said, clearly not buying it. She turned her attention back to the newcomer. “So, you say he saved you? And has he treated you properly?”

“He has been an absolute gentleman,” Maria replied. Except when I want him not to be, she thought to herself, flashing a quick glance his way.

Rohanna nodded slowly. “Interesting. You see, Tikanna? I told you he was finally growing up.”

“Maria was captured by the Raxxians, like the others,” the poor man cut in, desperate to avoid any further embarrassment. “I found her at the Husken Games, a prisoner sold off to one of the elite families to fill the vacancies in the players’ ranks.”

“And you thought it wise to free her?”

“I did. She clearly did not belong there. We know humans are recent arrivals to our world, as well as Dotharian laws. She will need to see the Skrizzit immediately.”

The two women looked over the newly arrived human and shared a curious glance. “Why?” Tikanna asked. “She has the runes.”

He shook his head. “Yes and no.”

“Yes and no? Explain.”

“Someone did the unthinkable, putting her very life at risk.”

“How so?” the old woman persisted.

“They gave her runes so she could compete, seemingly in compliance with Dotharian law. But what they gave her, while seemingly correct, are actually incomplete. Her Infala lacks several vital connecting lines. And it was done intentionally. If she fell into Dotharian hands, she would be executed.”

The women gasped at the revelation, utterly shocked that anyone, even one of the elites of those dreaded games, would do such a thing. Rohanna snapped her fingers and waved over her aide who had been standing silently nearby. She looked at Maria with sympathetic eyes.

“You poor dear. We will have your Infala repaired at once.” She turned to her aide. “Go fetch the Skrizzit immediately and have him prepare the finest pigments. Inform him he will be righting a grievous wrong committed against our guest. ”

“Immediately, Rohanna,” the aide said, hurrying out.

Rohanna shook her head slowly as she processed what had been done to Maria.

“Barbaric, truly. The Skrizzit will be arranged for you. But we will talk more later. For the moment, I know there are two people who very much wish to meet you.” She waved over another aide. “Take her to the gathering circle.”

“At once, Rohanna. Please, Maria, follow me.”

Maria started walking but noticed Zepharos wasn’t moving.

“It’s okay. Go on without me. You’re safe here, and I’m sure you have a lot to talk about with your fellow humans. I’ll catch up with you shortly.”

“Okay. And, Zeph, thank you.”

“It has been my privilege and pleasure. Now, go see your new friends.”

Maria didn’t need to be told twice. She hurried out with her guide and followed close, weaving between structures until they arrived at an open area laid out in a circle.

Whether it was a dining area or a meeting space was inconsequential.

What mattered was there were two women waiting for her in the center. Two human women.

“Oh my God! We heard there was another survivor, one of the women blurted. “I’m Darla, and this is Shalia. It’s so good to meet you!”

The two women rushed over and hugged the new arrival. No formalities, not getting to know you talk. This was another of the very few humans ever to set foot on this world, and that made her family.

“I’m Maria. It’s amazing meeting you two.”

Darla nodded. “Feels good seeing other humans, right?”

“You know, I was actually traveling with another survivor for a long time.”

“The Raxxian ship was a miserable experience,” Shalia said .

Maria shook her head. “No, not like that. I mean here, on this planet.”

The two women looked very interested in that tidbit.

“Hang on. There’s another out there?” Darla asked. “Where? What happened?”

Maria shook her head. “That’s a long story.

But the short of it is we were captured by some roving trader types and stuck in a transport vehicle while they roamed the countryside slowly gathering up other unfortunates like us.

No more humans though. We were the only two.

Just me and Ziana. Did either of you know her from the Raxxian ship? ”

The two women shook their heads.

“Ah, figures. I guess they had us spread out all over the place.”

Shalia leaned closer. “But what happened? How did you wind up here?”

“Ah, that. I was stuck in some alien wannabe Hunger Games competition but got disqualified early on. That meant I’d essentially become a slave as a result. But then, when all hope was lost, the most wonderful man rescued me.”

Darla seemed very pleased to hear that. “Someone broke you out? Excellent. Good for him. Did you bring him with you?”

“He’s from here, actually. Maybe you know him. Zepharos is his name.”

Darla and Shalia stiffened slightly, sharing a quick look. It was Darla who broke the moment.

“You say Zepharos rescued you.”

“Yep.”

“And he put himself in jeopardy doing so?”

“Big time. It’s been days and days of non-stop trekking to get us to safety.”

“And he behaved?”

“Yes. Why does everyone keep asking me that? ”

Darla and Shalia chuckled. “Let’s just say he has a bit of a history with women, human or otherwise.”

“He said. But he’s been nothing but good to me. But tell me, how did you two wind up here?”

The women relayed their stories in turn, leaving Maria stunned at all they’d been through. It almost made her own ordeal feel less horrible by comparison.

“Wait, so you’re saying you are both bonded to alien guys?”

“Yep,” Darla said with a broad grin.

“Guilty as charged,” Shalia added, equally chipper.

“And it was this Infala thing that did it?”

Darla nodded. “Oh, yeah. And let me tell you, if you think you’ve had good sex before, the intensity of an Infala bond is just off the charts.”

Shalia nodded emphatically. “Amen, sister. I mean, I know we’re already on another planet, but damn, it really is otherworldly good.”

“And the way you can feel each other’s reactions?”

“I know. It’s just… Mmm! I can’t get enough of him.”

“Me either,” Darla agreed. She noticed Maria’s mood had shifted, souring for no reason. At least no reason she could think of. “Hey, you okay? Was it something we said?”

“No, it’s fine. It’s just you make it sound so amazing, and here I am with a busted Infala. And intentionally at that.”

Darla’s cheer shifted to protective rage. “What? That’s a huge no-no. What happened? Who did this to you?”

Maria explained her situation as well as how Zepharos had noticed the subtle trick the chancellor’s Skrizzit had played on her.

“It’s okay though. Rohanna said she was going to have her Skrizzit fix it.”

Darla shook her head emphatically. “Nonsense. Heydar will do it. ”

“Wait, I know that name. Is he the prince?”

Darla blushed. “Yeah. And before you ask, yes, he is all that and a bag of chips. A hundred bags. A thousand, and you already met him on the ship. He’s the one who put the translation runes behind all our ears.”

“That big golden-tan guy? He’s your mate?”

“Yep. And when he hears what they did to you, he’ll want to make it right. He’s talented with the pigments, and he’ll have you right as rain in no time.”

“But Rohanna?—”

“Will understand. After what the Raxxians did to us, he takes it kind of personally and I know he’ll want to fix what was done to you with his own hands. He gets protective like that. And speak of the Devil, there he is, along with Valin.”

Two men stood at the far edge of the area, watching and talking among themselves but leaving the women to their meeting. Darla waved them over.

“Babe, this is Maria. They fucked up her Infala! On purpose! You’ve gotta help her out,” Darla called to him as he drew near.

“They did what ?” he asked, his eyes flaring with indignation. “Show me.”

Darla kept talking while Maria lifted her top, utterly unselfconscious. Not with these people. “Someone gave her runes but left her Infala improperly connected. I told her you’d fix it.”

Heydar leaned in close, examining the runes. “Quality work. This was clearly not an accident.”

Valin, Shalia’s mate, was standing at his side and he seemed equally incensed. “Who did this to her?”

Shalia moved close to him, almost as if magnetically drawn to her mate. “It was some asshole at the, what are they called again? Hurkin Games?”

“Husken Games,” Maria corrected .

“Ah, the elites,” Valin said, shaking his head. “No surprise there.” He turned to Heydar. “Can you fix it?”

“Yes. It will be delicate work, but I see a rather elegant solution that should have your runes powered up in no time.”

“Powered up?” Maria asked. “What do you mean?”

Heydar fixed his eyes on hers, the gravity of what was done to her making him deadly serious. “You were intentionally given a handicap. Something to prevent you from performing at your best in the games. It is a crime that makes my blood boil.”

“But the powering up thing?”

“That is part of it. The Infala is crucial to the connection of our runes, and when it is done properly, it allows all the other runes on our bodies to enhance the extremities and muscle groups upon which they are placed. There are additional specialty runes as well, such as my men and I possess, but that is a different circumstance that doesn’t apply to your situation.

Suffice it to say, you were competing at a disadvantage. ”

“Wow, that’s bullshit. But the odds of me winning were so slim, why bother?”

“Ah,” the imposing man said, shaking his head. “That is where their plan truly becomes nefarious. The incomplete Infala meant you would be handicapped, but it also ensured that once you lost you would remain indentured.”

“I don’t follow.”

Shalia interrupted, knowing quite a lot about this particular subject.

“What he’s saying is if you and your partner become Infala bonded, all indentures are voided, all crimes forgiven.

Essentially, it is such a momentous and rare occurrence that the two experiencing it are given a one-time clean slate.

It’s Dotharian law that supersedes all others.

No matter their claim upon you as a servant, if your Infala were to somehow meet its match, they would have to free you, and they clearly did not want that to happen no matter how unlikely it might be. ”

Maria was shell-shocked. “They actually did that to me?”

Heydar nodded. “Yes, and it is highly illegal. It was quite a risk they took, but those responsible had no reason to think anyone would ever be allowed close enough to you to notice.”

“And then I was busted out of there.”

“Yes. And I would wager they are very anxious for your recovery. But do not fear. I will personally repair what they did, and I will use the most powerful pigments in the village.”

“Thank you. So, what now?”

“Now? Now you eat, rest, and get settled. You must be relaxed for the process to work the best. Then first thing in the morning I will right this wrong inflicted upon you.”