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"Oh! Did I hit a nerve?" I poke at his sore spot. "Boo-fucking-hoo. I wasn't aware you had any feelings to hurt."
Navik snarls at me before refocusing on flying. "I would just as soon eject you into space."
Icy tingles skitter down my spine, finally putting a halt to my verbal banter. I have no doubt he would, and I wonder why he hasn't. Maybe the beast, sivot is what Navik called him, keeps the space pirate from acting on his threat. The beast had said I still needed protecting.
Protecting from who? Navik?
I will be sure to ask the beast the next time he makes an appearance.
After witnessing Navik transform into a beast, his species is a bit of a mystery. I'd seen visuals of the space pirate on Warden Hyt’s monitors, but the conversations I’d eavesdropped on between the warden and his guards made no mention of a monstrous alter ego, only his notoriety as a Kaul who could get his hands on anything for the right price. He belonged to some elite group of space pirates called Star Mavericks.
It was also said he is extremely dangerous. After seeing what he morphed into, I knew firsthand how dangerous he could be.
With Navik's attention elsewhere, I tug at the leather collar circling my throat, desperate to remove the symbol of my enslavement. I've worn it for so long, I'd grown used to the feel of it, but I'm free now, no longer owned by another, and I want it off, but I'm not about to ask for Navik's help.
His beast would help me though, I know it.
I settle back into my seat, snuggle into the blanket the beast gave me, and watch out the panoramic window as we travel through space. Navik steers us into a spiraling galaxy made up of a dazzling swirl of milky green. A tapestry of stars streams past, most with orbiting planets of vibrant colors. Wide-eyed, it's hard to comprehend the vastness of what's before me.
As the ship hums a soft lullaby, the adrenaline rush from my escape fades to exhaustion. I'm hardly safe, but I'm finally out of Warden Hyt's clutches and surrounded by stars that twinkle like diamonds in the night sky.
I don't recall anything about my abduction, and this is my first real look at outer space. The vastness of it is both overwhelming and comforting. I could get lost out here, go far, far away where the warden will never find me again.
The planets look like jewels floating in darkness, each one a different color and size. Some are small and round while others are massive with swirls of blues and greens. I can't help but wonder what's on those planets and if anyone lives there.
The beauty of it all has my eyes growing too heavy to hold open. Warm and cozy in the blanket the beast gave me, the fabric soft against my skin, I let the hum of the ship lull me into a heavy slumber.
* * *
I slowly awakento the unbuckling of my seatbelt. I open my eyes to find we've landed. Navik is already up and gone from his seat, leaving me alone on the bridge. I stretch my arms above my head, feeling more refreshed than I have in a long time.
My gaze is drawn to the panoramic window, and I lean forward, eager to take in the scenery outside.
A strange alien landscape greets me. A barren desert of red and orange stretches out before us, dotted with tall spires of rock that look like they've been carved by a giant's hand. The rocks are massive, stretching up to the sky, with gaseous clouds billowing from the top of each one. The whole of the alien scenery glows eerily in the light of a nearby star.
I'm so transfixed by the view, I almost don't notice Navik is back on the bridge and removing panels from the walls in the rear. He moves quickly, his body a blur of motion as he works. His movements are precise and efficient, like he knows exactly what he's doing.
A bag of weird tools sits next to him on the floor where he crouches before a small access tunnel to the ship's inner workings. Bundles of wires run the length of the walls that blink with thousands of tiny lights.
I watch as Navik low crawls into the small opening. He settles on his side with his booted feet sticking out of the entrance. On soundless feet, I move closer, curious as to what he's doing.
He wiggles back out, reaches for the tool bag, and bumps his head on the low ceiling. A string of alien curse words filters through the translator surgically implanted inside my ear.
"Wow!" I scoff, rubbing at my ear. "My mom would have washed my mouth out with soap if I'd said half of what you just did. And that one word,bliking. I'm guessing that's equivalent to an F-bomb."
Navik scoots completely out of the access tunnel. Seated on the floor, he peers up at me with his brows pinched into a deep furrow.
"Do you always talk this much?" he grumbles. "It was bad enough having to listen to your snoring for hours."
"I don't snore." I loosely cross my arms across my chest.
"How would you know when you're asleep while you're doing it?"
Navik makes a valid point, but I’m not about to admit it. "Do you need help? I can hand you tools so you don't have to keep coming out to get them."
"You are a strange creature, starfire." Navik shakes his stark white head at me. "Most humans would be cowering in the corner, soaking in a puddle of their own piss had they been abducted by me. But you," he wags a finger at me, "you show courage where most would not."
"Abducted by you?" A sudden surge of dread washes over me, but I keep my gaze fixed firmly on him, not wanting to show any sign of fear. "Iwas the one who tookyouhostage."
