“A useless one,” Driok rasps. “But the only one who said they had experience with humans.”
He carries me to the far wall where a door opens up into a subtly lit corridor which I’m quite pleased about as the lights were starting to hurt my eyes. Then what he says sinks in.
“If they’ve had experience with humans…” My words are slurred and it’s hard to get them out. “Then they had contact with us when we were being taken from Earth.”
“Most likely,” Driok says. “Given we have to keep away from the authorities here.”
I want to ask him what he means, but I can’t stay awake. I see we enter an elevator which is all glass and then my eyes close.
When I open them again, a pale blue moon face with slits for nostrils and huge black, dead eyes is staring down at me.
“Ahh!” I flail my arms at the face.
It’s every archetype of an alien I’ve ever seen represented on Earth. Which, as all the other aliens I’ve met are nothing like the standard little grey man, I have to wonder where we got it from.
This one, presumably.
“There now,” it says in a metallic voice, presumably because it has no mouth. “Your mate is well once more.”
The alien is shoved to one side, and Driok appears instead. I feel my chest swelling with desire, with need, for him. Driok inhales deeply.
“Ah, yes,” Metallic Voice says. “What I have given her might make her a little more uninhibited for a few hours.”
“You’re telling me.” I grab at Driok and pull him in for a kiss.
He doesn’t resist.
“Let her have a little food and drink, and it will lessen,” the alien says, sticking his face directly into my eye line.
“You can get lost,” I growl at the alien once I release Driok. “We need some alone time.”
Driok puts his hand on my chest and holds me down slightly.
“Are you sure you have made a correct diagnosis this time, healer?” he snarls at the alien. “Because if you have not, I will be returning to deal with you.”
“I have worked on humans before,” it gibbers. “But I admit, I have only seen one.”
“Bastard.” I attempt to get up, but Driok still has a gentle, firm hand on me. “Bet you helped them, didn’t you?”
“My mate believes you may have been complicit in dealing in the flesh of humans,” Driok growls. “Given their species is incapable of space flight outside of their own galaxy and therefore none of them have made it to another voluntarily.”
“Yeah!” I respond before I find my brow creasing with the realization of what he just said…about humans.
“So, if you have been complicit, I may have to remove your head from your body,” Driok adds.
“Err, no?” I say.
“Wait, wait.” The alien holds up three hands, each one topped with three fingers. “There are humans in this galaxy, that is true, and they didn’t get here because they wanted to be here, but I had nothing to do with it. You have my bond as a healer,” he gibbers.
Driok looks at me. I narrow my eyes at the healer. I’m not sure I believe him, but also I want to jump Driok’s bones more. I put my hand over his.
“If I find out you are not telling the truth, Nzx, I will deal with you accordingly,” Driok says, lifting me into his arms and gazing down at me. “Or perhaps I will let my mate have at you.” He glares at the alien. “She’s far more vicious than I.”
DRIOK
My Maggie is fine, our sarkarnling is fine. Her recent loss of consciousness is, apparently, the after effect of the gas the overseer used on us lingering in her system as her lungs are not as efficient as mine are at filtering.
There will be no lasting ill effects, and the healer gave her something to help clear it out of her system, along with some additional supplements for the young in her belly.
