Page 7 of Pet: Torment
There are so many emotions I want to feel. But none of them seem possible at this moment as I remain suspended between breaking down and constant awe. Thankfully, Remus doesn’t push me to explain how I’m feeling. He goes through the required steps to start the vehicle, and the slow lift makes me realize it flies.
As I look ahead, I notice the wall in front of us lowering to reveal a space just big enough for this to fit through, and we are off. We pass through the dark tunnel, exiting just as quickly to climb high in the sky.
“What do you think so far?” Remus asks, once again breaking the silence.
“Obviously, it’s breathtaking,” I say in irritation, to which Remus laughs.
I almost missed the sound of that laugh. He’s been so quiet throughout this trip, carefully reacting to me, that it’s made him eerie in my mind. A small part of me is glad to see this side of Remus. It makes him less scary after what I witnessed on Earth.
“Obviously,” he repeats.
“Where are we going now?” I ask.
“To my home,” he says.
I can’t imagine what Remus’s home would look like. In all honesty, I haven’t even thought about it until now. Remus neverstayed in one place on Earth. He constantly traveled, never allowing me a glimpse into the way he lives, further adding to the mystery that is Remus. And as I think it, does it occur to me just how big of a development that is.
The remainder of the trip takes about thirty minutes. As we descend beneath the clouds, the newest landscape is revealed to me.
“What…?” I whisper as I press my hands against the glass.
We’re in the mountains. Though like most things in this world, they look nothing like Earth’s mountains. The large mass of rock stretches toward the sky in a jagged formation, but there are loose pieces of land floating as we pass through.
“How?” I whisper.
“We’re very close to the planetLlora. You can see it in the atmosphere. It shifts gravity and has been doing so for thousands of years,” Remus says as if the explanation is simple. Before I can respond, I notice a mountain in the distance that looks different. The snow is a different color, I realize as we get closer.
It’s a very soft and pale lavender. And as we fly over the icy wonderland, I note that Remus has slowed down. A house sits just like the buildings in the city, carved into the side of the mountain. The windows reflect the world beyond as they stretch higher than any I’ve ever seen on a home, with what looks like marble walls peaking from the mountainous terrain. I find myself laughing as I get the first glimpse into Remus’s true personality.
“What do you think?” Remus asks, pulling me from my thoughts.
“It suits you.”
Remus laughs at my response, but it rings true for me. This is his home. This is where he can be himself without any outsider getting a glimpse of it. It’s elaborate and elegant, just like him.And as the ship descends onto the platform extending from the house, I become more and more anxious, just thinking of what I will see.
The ship powers down, and Remus turns to me, pulling his cape from his shoulders. He wraps it around me, and I notice his fingers lingering as he fastens it. But I don’t mind. The entrance toXyrannis, the trip here, and my body’s sad attempt to adjust to this world are exhausting. And because of the bond we now share, Remus’s presence helps calm me down.
His purple eyes meet mine, glowing in excitement.
“Shall we?”
The air is frigid as we step out of the ship and I suddenly understand why Remus gave me his cape, even if the distance to enter his home is short—my cheeks already sting from the air. But I can’t look away from the snow—or the mountain range. I squint as I take in much larger formations floating in the distance.
“Come. You’ll freeze to death if you stay out here,” Remus calls to me from the entrance. His clothing is a thin long sleeve, yet he looks unbothered by the cold. But I take one last look in the distance before following Remus into his home.
Remus
I should regret the things that I’ve done. But I don’t. I don’t feel remorse for taking Iris’s home world. I’m just glad I stumbled upon her before she became a part of their history; a planet that once housed intelligent life that wasn’t intelligent enough to take one look in the mirror. And Iris saw that up close.
I’m glad her people are suffering.
I shift my attention to Iris as she crosses the platform that leads into my home. The air is freezing, especially this high up. But it feels nice as it touches my skin. My body temperature is much higher than a human’s, making winters on Earth miserable, seeing as humans had managed to ruin their winters by the time we arrived. The temperature surrounding my home is deadly for Iris, especially with her body temperature. She’d freeze to death.
But she doesn’t seem to mind. She’s wrapped in my cape, and the awe on her expression is everything I thought it would be as she takes in my home. It’s been difficult keeping my distance from her. Even now, I want to hold her close to me as I explain everything about this place. But I know she needs space. I know that if I push too hard, she will snap. She just lost her planet. That is a heavy burden.
I’ve missed my planet. I’ve missed my home. So, I partially understand Iris’s bouts of anger or silence as she comes to terms with her new life. But it’s moments like this that I don’t understand her completely. She has been enamored every step of the way, including now. Yet she holds fast to her resentment of what was left behind. Even after everything she endured for it.
As the door closes and the platform moves down to take us into the house, I take the moment to revel in the proximity of Iris. It’s been difficult keeping my distance from her. Especially since we are bonded. I want nothing more than to take her and bury myself so deep inside the warmth of her body, never to leave. But I can’t. Not if I want this to go smoothly. Bonding with a human is foreign territory. And I’ve already seen the effects of my not being close over the past few weeks. The essence inside of her is running rampant, unfamiliar with the body that houses it.