Chapter Five
"We're so glad that you came."
I was still a bit startled by the woman talking to me and it took a moment for me to be able to respond to her.
"Thank you. I'm glad to be here."
The woman, who I was taken to meet was the queen, she was so large she even made me feel small, which is quite a feat most of the time. I was not used to having women be taller than me, and her shoulders were broad and strong. She was beautiful in a dignified way that I had always admired about the older professors at home and she looked at me with tenderness in her eyes that made me feel like it was my mother looking at me. She strode forward toward me and reached for my hand with both of hers.
"I'm Theia, Queen of Uoria. This is my husband, Creia."
Her hands nearly engulfed mine and she held them warmly as a massive man came up behind her, smiling at me kindly. I wasn't sure what to expect from the royal couple, but this certainly wasn't it. As I stood there in the huge meeting hall with Theia's hands grasping mine and a row of warriors standing behind me, I started feeling like I should have done more research about the planet before I made the decision to suddenly come here for six months to teach. I felt even less like I understood the culture now that I had seen Ero, compared him to the truly huge warriors who joined us in the meeting hall, and met the monarchs.
"It's very nice to meet you," I said, really meaning it.
Being near the king and queen made me feel somewhat more at home and I was starting to feel much more confident about my role, even as I wondered how much studying I was going to be able to shove in the brief amount of time I had before I started teaching. I wanted to have a little bit of a grasp of the culture before I tried to interact with them on a regular basis.
"We have loved having Leia here with us, and we are very excited to do more with the exchange program."
The statement struck me as strange. Leia had only been here for two months and from my understanding, she had been alone on an artist's retreat for most of that time. I supposed she just meant that they loved the idea that she was there and that the idea of the people of Uoria and Earth interacting and cooperating.
"I hope that I can be a positive influence on the program. I'm excited for the opportunity to share our customs and history with you."
I heard snickering from behind me and I glanced over my shoulder. A couple of the warriors were trying to maintain straight faces and I looked back at the king and queen.
"Did I say something funny?" I asked.
The royals looked faintly uncomfortable and the king shot a glare at the warriors, who immediately fell silent.
"You'll have to forgive our warriors. They aren't accustomed to such formality."
"It's quite alright," I said, looking back toward the warriors, "I don't think of it as formality so much as intelligence."
At the end of the row of warriors I could see a dark look roll over Ero's face. There was something about him that both drew me to him and repelled me. I could see the hint of disdain in his eyes when he looked at me, and I knew it was because I am not like the more delicate women who had already come. I was accustomed to that look, but somehow it coming from him made me angry.
"Well, it has been a long trip. We would love for you to join us for dinner if you're hungry."
Theia had released my hand, only to loop her arm through mine and start leading me gently through the room toward a large arched door at the far end. As we passed by the row of warriors, I heard Ero's voice.
"I'm sure she's hungry."
I stopped and looked at him.
"Excuse me?"
He looked back at me with an expression that said he didn't think I was going to hear him.
"Like she said, it was a long trip and I've heard that the food on the ships isn't very good. I just meant that it's time for dinner and I'm sure you'd like to join us."
I didn't bother responding. Instead, I let Theia lead me the rest of the way across the room and through the doorway into a large banquet room. The space glowed with firelight and was filled with delicious smells coming from platters of food lined down the long tables positioned in a squared U-shape around the edge of the room. Most of the chairs were filled and I noticed the distinct difference between the Denynso and the three human women sitting close to me.
"Everyone," Theia said and immediately everyone in the room quieted and turned to me, "This is Zuri Hase. She has joined us from the university to be a part of our exchange program. We are thrilled to have her here to help us understand the people of Earth more and hopefully get us closer to our goals of cooperation and eventual integration. Please make her feel welcome."
I saw several of the warriors tense when the queen mentioned integration, but most of the people in the room smiled welcomingly at me. I saw a very thin woman coming toward me, her arms open as if to hug me. It took me until she was almost at me to realize that it was Leia. I gathered her into a hug, disturbed by how fragile and bony she felt in my arms. She had never been a large girl, but she seemed even thinner now than I had seen her.
"It's so good to see you!" Leia exclaimed and I smiled down at her.
"It's wonderful to see you, too. Are you well?"
Leia laughed and nodded. I'm sure she knew what I was thinking, but she wasn’t volunteering any information.
"I'm better than I've ever been. Come meet the other women."
Theia smiled at me and released my arm, allowing Leia to pull me toward the table where I saw two other human women sitting beside each other. She introduced me to Eden, who had her hands rested over her belly in the nurturing, protective way of an expectant mother even though it was only a slight swell, and Elianna who was tiny and delicate looking with dark hair that hung around her face and brought out her piercing green eyes. I was happy to have other human women with me and immediately felt a connection with them. We had been talking and eating for several minutes when I heard Ero's voice come over the rumble of the other voices around me.
"We'll have to keep a special eye on her and make sure she doesn't get hurt. I don't know if Ciyrs has enough healing power to take care of everything she's got going on."
Humiliation, hurt, and anger flowed through me and made my face burn. The three women shot furious looks at the warriors but I held up my hand to quiet them before they said anything. I climbed backwards over the bench beside the table and rushed out of the banquet hall, bursting out of the building before I let the tears stinging in the corners of my eyes spill down my cheeks. What the hell was wrong with him?
I was so tired of that attitude. I couldn't stand men trying to make me feel like I was worth less because I wasn't frail and dainty. Even worse was how much I wanted Ero specifically not to think of me that way. I hated the way that he made me feel. It was a confusing, uncomfortable mixture of wanting absolutely nothing to do with him and wanting everything to do with him. I had butterflies in my stomach when I looked at him, but in that moment, those butterflies were replaced by a wave of sickness. Behind me I heard Ero calling my name, but I didn't slow down. I didn't know where I was going, but I kept going. I just needed to get away from the banquet hall and the sound of Ero's voice.
The darkness around me got deeper and more intense as I ran, but I still didn’t stop. I told myself I would eventually find my way, that I would come upon a house or other building and be able to ask directions to wherever I was supposed to live for the six months I planned to stay on the planet. Unfortunately, that didn't happen. Within a few minutes of leaving the banquet hall, I was lost. Within a few minutes after that, I was hopelessly lost. And by the time I felt the long, slimy fingers stroke the back of my neck and saw the gleaming fangs coming down at me, I knew I was gone forever.