Page 5 of Whispers of the Void (Voidborn Chronicles #1)

CHAPTER 5

NEEV

* * *

I must have been exhausted because as soon as the commander left, I laid down in the bed, his bed, and fell fast asleep. I had managed to comb my hair into submission right before a knock at the door sounds. It’s kind of him to knock when I’m sure the door is set to automatically allow him entry.

He fills the doorway as the doors slide open. I’ve noticed that none of the other Zeahirians on the ship have eyes like his. The bright green seems to be a unique feature, as does the fact that he’s taller than nearly anyone else on the ship, his second in command being the closest. They aren’t the tallest species I’ve seen, one of my sisters is double my height, but even that doesn’t dull the intimidation they make me feel.

I feel safe with Commander Asterean, even though I shouldn’t. I keep reminding myself he abducted me from my bed. I don’t care if the Order eventually gave in or not. It was unnecessary. I’m not a prisoner in need of a jailbreak.

“Hello Commander.”

“If I’m not to call you Sister, you are going to have to call me Raiz.”

“I’ll do my best.”

Truth be told I’ve only spoken to a handful of males in my life. As a translator I don’t do much speaking within my role. The few times I went to the surface of Calindrea most of the males kept their distance, knowing from my robes that I was from the Order, so they mostly left me alone. It’s not forbidden to speak or even bed them, I just never felt as comfortable as others on Oculus Nine did. It is more than likely due to being raised by all females from infancy.

The crew nods deferentially to Raiz as we pass and then look at me with varying degrees of curiosity and interest. None of them make me feel uncomfortable. His towering presence doesn’t hurt, either.

Loud voices and laughter fill the mess hall as I step inside. It all stops as soon as Raiz enters behind me. Boots shuffle and chairs slide as everyone stands and salutes him. He wraps his hand around my bicep, while the heat from his body seeps into my back. He calls out something that my translator doesn’t catch, almost a growl. I feel the vibration from his chest in my back.

Every pair of eyes in the room lands on me as they fist their right hands and firmly pound them against their chests simultaneously. Curiously, as I look around the room, I don’t notice anyone with green eyes like Raiz. They’re all various shades of gold, silver, or red.

I realize they’re all frozen in that stance, waiting for something. “What should I do?” I whisper over my shoulder to Raiz.

“Whatever feels natural to acknowledge them.”

What the stars, that’s the least helpful thing I’ve ever been told.

I incline my head, giving them all what I’m sure is the most uncomfortable smile in the galaxy. They all sit and go back to what they had been doing before we walked in, although not as boisterously as before. Raiz leads me over to a wall of food synthesizers.

“Please tell me they’re never going to do that again.” My cheeks still burn at the attention.

He does a double take and raises his hand, moving as if his intention is to touch my face. He drops his hand as soon as he sees my eyes widen in surprise.

“Why does your face do that? Are you ill?”

“It’s called blushing.” I focus all my attention on scrolling through the options for dinner. “Haven’t been around many humans?” I ask.

“No. You’re the first I’ve closely interacted with. Why do the blushing?”

“Humans blush for multiple reasons. They might be embarrassed or angry or—” I’m not going to tell him about the more sexual reasons.

“Or?”

“I’m sure there’s other reasons. I was embarrassed, uncomfortable, with the amount of attention. I’m not used to it.”

“Interesting. Can’t say it bothers me.” He opens the door and pulls out a plate full of what looks like fish and some kind of vegetables, as well as a glass of amber liquid.

My synthesizer beeps alerting me to my food being ready. A bowl of steaming chicken and rice soup, a roll of crusty bread, and a glass of cold water sit ready on the tray. My mouth waters at the scent. This ship has some of the best food I’ve had. Definitely beats Oculus Nine. Not that it’s hard to beat, with the bland food they insist on serving us.

“Is that all the food you require?” Raiz frowns down at my bowl when I sit down beside him at a table in front of a window.

“Yes.”

“That’s not what Hyva said. He said human functions and systems were similar to ours. Zeahiri could not survive on that.”

“This isn’t all I eat. Humans usually eat two or three times throughout the day.”

He doesn’t look convinced.

“What are you eating?” I gesture toward his plate. “I’ve never seen any of that before.”

“Taros, a type of underground vegetable.” He stabs his fork into one of the tender vegetables. “Eglick is a fish native to Zeahiri. This is a common meal.”

Two trays drop onto the table in front of us. When I look up I see Hyva and Lieutenant Jai sitting down. They’re eating the same thing as Raiz.

“Sister Neev,” she begins but I cut her off.

“Just Neev, please.”

She gives me a smile, her two fangs showing the tiniest bit. “Neev. Please allow me to apologize. My outburst wasn’t directed at you, it was directed at Mydax for challenging the commander. And call me Vynia.”

“No apologies necessary.”

In truth I didn’t even realize she had any kind of reaction. One moment I was having a conversation, and the next Hyva had me thrown over his shoulder and was halfway down the stairs to get to med bay. Everything happened so fast.

“Neev says that this is all humans need to consume to live,” Raiz says to Hyva. “Is that accurate?”

Hyva’s eyes meet mine, and I swear I can see the alien version of an eye roll inside them. “It looks sufficient. They eat more often than we do.” He examines my soup. “What is that called?”

“Soup. It has protein, vegetables, and grains. Perfectly balanced.”

“Liquid meals are not filling,” Raiz states.

I meet Hyva’s eyes, which are full of mirth. Being abducted by a weirdly overprotective warrior alien wasn’t something I had expected this year. Or any year really.

I decide to change the subject and look across to Vynia. “I haven’t spent much time out of my quarters, but you’re the only female I’ve noticed on board aside from myself. Are there any others?”

“No. It’s just you and I. Female survival on Zeahiri is rare.”

“Oh.” What a different experience from what I’m used to. “Why is that?”

They share a quiet look that tells me maybe I should not have inquired.

“You and Altis share a last name, are you siblings?” I change the subject to avoid a social faux pas.

“We are twins.”

My stomach twists. I’ve always wanted a sibling. Someone who was just mine, who I could tell my secrets to and grow up, laughing our way through trouble.

“That’s lovely.”

Quiet settles over the four of us as we continue to eat. I let my eyes roam around the room, taking in the crew around us. It’s more boisterous than I’m used to when I eat in the company of others in the Order. There’s no vow of silence for us but rarely will one hear any sort of loud exclamation.

A dull ache begins to throb at the back of my head. So far I haven’t been plagued by headaches like I would have expected without my medication, but with each beat of my heart, I feel the pressure in my skull magnify.

Knowing that the migraine is bound to hit soon, I quickly finish my meal and drink as much water as possible. I consider asking Hyva if he has anything to help treat the problem, but I don’t want to trouble him again. Hopefully, I can sleep it off.

I look at my dinner companions and give them what I hope is a convincing smile. “Thank you for dinner. I’m glad you pulled me out of my quarters for a meal. I’m going to retire for the night.”

“I’ll escort you back.” Vynia stands. “I’m going that way anyway.”

She shows me where to place my dishes and then we fall into step beside each other.

“What drew you to becoming a pilot?” I ask.

“A lot of things.” She laughs quietly. “But mostly because a bunch of males told me I couldn’t do it.”

“Altis?” That doesn’t seem like him.

“No. Never. He and Raiz were always so encouraging growing up.” She stops us in the hall and raises her leg, unbuckling her left boot and pulling it off. “I was born missing half my leg and foot.”

I grab my chest. “I’m so sorry.”

She reattaches everything with practiced ease. “Don’t be. My lack of a leg probably saved my life or Altis’s.” She stops in front of my quarters. “Plus, what I lacked in physicality I made up for in tenacity. It’s how I climbed the ranks in flight school as quickly as my brother and the commander.”

“Did you all grow up together?”

“Raiz is as close as family to us. Our mother served his mother’s household. We were raised under his family’s roof.”

I want to continue asking questions, to soak up all this new knowledge of lives and culture outside of my lived experience, but a lance of pain shoots from the base of my skull to the front. I know I only have minutes to get in bed before it becomes a full-fledged migraine.

“You’re lucky to have each other.”

“We are.” She looks down at me, her golden eyes narrowing slightly. “Are you alright?”

“Yes.” I feign another smile. “Just feel a headache coming on.”

“Do you need anything? I can go get Hyva.”

“No, I’m sure I just need sleep. Thank you.”

“If you change your mind, just hit the button by the door and tell the computer you need him or even me.”

“Thank you.” That’s good to know.

“Goodnight.” She waits until the doors close behind me to walk away.

“Lights dimmed, please,” I call out to the computer. As soon as everything around me darkens, I drag a deep breath in through my nose and out my mouth. I just need to make it to bed. My pulse throbs against my temples, and I nearly whimper as soon as my head hits the pillow. My eyes close, and I fall into a deep sleep before I can even kick off my remaining boot.

* * *

Everything around me is white. A yawning, endless expanse of nothing as the whispers grow steadily louder. I try to run from them as their volume increases, but there’s nowhere for me to go. No direction to run.

Tears streak down my cheeks as my chest tightens. I can’t breathe. Even as I feel the beating of my heart so fast and powerful inside my chest, my lungs won’t inflate and draw oxygen. I drop to my knees, pain shooting through my joints upon impact.

Maybe if I just lay down and close my eyes, I’ll awaken back in my bed on Oculus Nine. Everything is a dream. I can breathe. I’m just sleeping.

I’ll awaken.

Pressing my forehead to my knees, I curl into a ball and wish for quiet.

For peace.