Baby for the Dragon (No Such Thing as Dragons Book 5) by Lauren Lively (32)

UORIA MATES II

Complete Series (Books 1 – 10)

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Ruth Anne Scott

#1 Sci-Fi Alien Romance Series on Amazon.com

Book 1 – The Alien’s Mission

Chapter One

The Denynso warriors were lined up along the center of the compound facing the meeting hall, creating a powerful wall of intensity and strength. Each wore a black band around his arm, bold white stitches creating a "J" in the center. They were silent, stoic as they stared at the front steps of the hall where Creia, the king of their people, had appeared through the massive wooden doors.

Creia wore long black robes that stood in stark contrast to the blue of his usual clothing. The white of his hair intensified the darkness of the black ribbons woven through it that reflected the woven pattern through the hair of each of the warriors that faced him. There were several moments of dark, tense silence that hung over the compound and then the doors behind the king opened slowly.

Though they remained silent, the warriors stiffened. They all knew what was coming, and none of them felt prepared to handle it. It had only been twenty-four hours since the battle and they were all still trying to cope with the effects of the horror that they had seen. To overcome it, however, they knew they had to honor what was lost so that they could internalize their pain and anger, and move forward with even greater determination. The Klimnu were gone, but that didn't mean that they were always going to be safe, or that they would forget what they had to go through in order to get rid of those creatures.

Bannack fought the urge to shift in his position in the line of warriors. On either side of him were Pyra and Gyyx, both staring unblinking at the doors as they opened. The anger that built inside him was unlike anything he had ever experienced. Even as a member of a species of warriors known for being aggressive, intense, and powerful, he was volatile and unpredictable. Younger than most of the other warriors, Bannack had not seen as many battles as the others, but this had been something that he could never have fathomed. What he had seen had scarred him in a place deeper than he understood, and as he stood there watching the first of the women appear at the door.

Tall and strong, the Denynso women seemed far more powerful than the females of the other species they had encountered, but in that moment each stood at the door with tears streaming down their faces. None made a sound despite the tears. They stayed strong, keeping their eyes focused ahead of them with the same concentration and intensity as the warriors. After standing in the doorway for a few moments, the women stepped forward and the black cloth they held between them came into view.

The cloth held a folded tunic and a small dagger in the center, and the women held it as if they could feel the strange lack of weight that usually accompanied the funeral cloth when they made their processional down the steps of the meeting hall and toward the wide lake at the back of the compound. Suddenly the king's voice broke through the intense silence that felt like it was suffocating the warriors.

"Today we honor one of our own who has fallen. Jem fought valiantly in our battles against the Klimnu and in his last moments he made the most courageous decision that he could. With his last breaths he chose to sacrifice himself for the good and the future of our kind. With his death he took with him the last of our most hated of enemies, securing for us a future that is free from their torment and primed for the joy that will come. We will never forget what he did for us and though we cannot properly honor his body, we honor his memory and the bit of him that will continue with us forever."

As Creia fell silent again, the women continued forward from their place to the meeting hall and down the imposing stone stairs. Those stairs always represented the strength and stability of the species and the security of the compound, but now they seemed to emphasize the pain that radiated through the row of warriors and the women who carried the empty shroud down them. As they descended, the women didn't make eye contact with any of the warriors. This was their way. The women carried the dead, a final symbol of nurturing and care, while the warriors stood vigil as a sign of continuous protection and respect.

Bannack could see the tears sparkling on the women's cheeks and felt discomfort in his stomach. The women of their kind were not known to be emotional and only one other time in his life had he seen one of them shed a single tear. Now they were all crying, though restraining any noise, and he knew that it was not just for Jem, the warrior who had sacrificed himself in the final battle of a lengthy war against the evil Klimnu species. They were crying for everything that their kind had gone through in their years of battle against the slimy creatures who had been so determined to capture and kill their beloved king Creia and take over the compound, and the entirety of the planet of Uoria. They were crying for everything that those creatures had put the Denynyso through, and everything that they had done to the human women who had come to the planet and become a part of the clan. It was perhaps these women, the smaller, more delicate human women, who had suffered the worst at the hands of the Klimnu in recent times, and it was them that had given the Denynso warriors what they needed to finally defeat them.

The women carried the black cloth with Jem's tunic and dagger, the personal items they had taken from his home to represent him in the absence of his actual body, down the steps and through the center of the compound, passing through the line of warriors that separated silently as they approached. Bannack felt the anger become even more intense as his eyes fell on the empty tunic. This wasn't fair. This wasn't what one of the strongest, bravest, and most selfless men to have ever been in their clan deserved for his final memorial. He deserved to have his body honored in the way of the men that came before him, and to be offered the same respect that any of the other warriors would expect if they were the ones who had given their lives to finally bring the conflict with the Klimnu to an end. It was if the slimy, vile creatures had gotten their last bit of vengeance even though they were eradicated in the battle. By giving himself, wholly and completely, Jem had saved the Denynso, but had also given the Klimnu a grasp on the history of the clan that they would never be able to shake free. Whenever someone thought or spoke of Jem, they would be forced to think and speak of the Klimnu as well.

Bannack kept his eyes forward as the women passed through the line of warriors, trying to tear his mind away from the thoughts of that final battle that had been tormenting him for the last day. They flashed in front of his eyes as if they were still happening, filling his mind with reverberations of the sounds, the smells, and the gut-wrenching pain. He remembered the exact moment that the battle had ended. It was unlike any other battle that they had ever experienced with the Klimnu. Those battles had ended with the Klimnu retreating, running away from the vastly more powerful Denynso so that they could go back to planning their next attack. This battle, however, had ended when the final three Klimnu approached Jem on a branch in the mysterious mirrored world that existed just beneath the compound.

Though Ty, a young Denynso who had just learned to utilize a hidden gift that he had inherited from his father and had never used before to step out of his usual role and become a warrior, had attempted to save him, Jem knew what was better for the rest of the warriors, the compound, and all of Uoria. He had fought the power that would have lifted him out of the battle and saved his life. Instead, he grabbed onto the final three Klimnu and threw himself off of the branch, disappearing into the reflected sky and taking the creatures with him. The Denynso didn't know where he went or what had happened to him, but they knew that he would not return.

The ending of the battle had been so sudden, so intense and final, but Bannack still felt the aggression and anger that fueled them through the fighting. Entering that mirror world had been like nothing Bannack had ever experienced. In that world he felt more powerful, more intense, and more aggressive than he ever had in any other battle. There was something brewing inside him that he couldn't fight and he felt like he was on the brink of going insane.

Chapter Two

Bannack took his place near the edge of the lake and mimicked the position of the other warriors, reaching over his shoulder for one of the arrows tucked in the quiver on his back. His opposite hand held a bow painstakingly handcrafted from one of the trees in the forest that they had only the day before discovered was covering the mysterious and dangerous underground lair that the Klimnu had been using to infiltrate the compound with the help of a human flight attendant who sympathized with the Klimnu's hatred for the Denynso. This was a treasured weapon, but one almost never used for actual combat. Instead, it was an item that every Denynso warrior made for himself in his early life and kept as a reminder of their heritage and the ancestors. Occasionally the bows made an appearance during a battle or were used to hunt some of the species that would come to the land near the compound once a year. Most often, though, they were kept displayed within the warriors' homes and taken down only when it was time to pay homage to the dead.

The women carried the cloth to the edge of the purple water, its color darker and more saturated than the smaller pond near the cliffs on the other edge of the compound, and lowered themselves to their knees. They moved in concert, never turning their eyes away from the intense focus directly in front of them, but moving at the same moments and in the exact same way as all of the others. The first two women lowered their corners of the cloth into the water and the women behind them handed their sections forward, passing the edges of the black shroud through all of their hands so that the first two could guide it down into the lake.

As the water took hold of the cloth and it started to drift forward, the warriors drew their arrows and lifted their bows. When the cloth made it nearly to the center of the lake, Creia walked down the row of warriors, lighting the ends of the arrows with the torch he held. The warriors lifted their flaming arrows at the same moment, pointing them sharply toward the expanse of dark blue above them, and let them fly.

The arrows hit the cloth just as it reached the center of the lake and a massive whirlpool began to churn beneath it. This majestic phenomenon was why the earliest members of the Denynso tribe had chosen this lake as the place where they would put their cherished warrior to final rest. The whirlpool began when something touched the center of the lake and would churn as it did now, pushing upward into a funnel of water that lifted the flame-engulfed cloth, tunic, and dagger toward the sky. After several seconds, the column of water lowered and the flames, along with the memorial to Jem, disappeared into the depths. They didn't know what happened to the honored men that ended up in the water, but they believed that by giving them into the water that surged under the ground and gave life to the plants that thrived on Uoria, they were giving their beloved warriors continued life.

Bannack could only hope that it was true now. Jem's death was a confounding and infuriating mystery that none of the warriors, and not even Creia or his wife, the queen of the Denynso Theia, could explain. What lurked beneath the compound was a place that seemed to directly reflect the land above it, as if a mirror had been placed just at the ground line so that what looked like branches of massive trees were actually the roots above, what looked like roots were actually branches, and what looked like water covering the floor of the massive cavern was actually a reflection of the sky. This is where Jem fell. He jumped down into this reflection of the sky, giving himself over to it without knowing what would happen, and none knew where he ended up.

Bannack hoped that even though they could not properly inter his body in the lake, that Jem's spirit would continue on through all of them and give them the strength and courage that he possessed, because even though they had eliminated the last of the Klimnu, Bannack did not believe that it would be the end of the threats to the Denynso. There would be more. There would be more battles to fight and more wars to win, and each warrior was going to need every bit of intensity and power that he could have if he was going to be able to help his kind continue to thrive and dominate their part of Uoria.

Everyone stayed in their places by the lake for several minutes after the funnel of water had completely disappeared back into the lake and the surface had become calm again. The women remained kneeling in the sand, the warriors maintained their wall of defiance, and the king and queen stood stoic and calm on the opposite side of the women. Behind them, a few yards back from this ritual that they had not seen and would not understand, stood the human women who had made their home on Uoria. These women, the mates of some of the warriors, as well as the healer and the baker, were astonishing to him.

He, like many of the other Denynso, had thought of human women as weak, flimsy little creatures prone to extreme emotions and unlikely to make much of a contribution to anything. When Creia announced that he wanted to foster greater understanding, connection, and cooperation with the humans of Earth, and that humans would be coming to the planet in order to not only research them, but to help them understand humankind, many of the warriors had been skeptical, even angry. Many of the earliest visitors, primarily scientists, had only been after a sample of their blood. It was well known that the blood of the Denynso warriors was incredibly special, and that it held the key to not only their powers and abilities, but to many amazing uses. Their desire to take samples of their blood had only increased the distrust among many of the warriors.

Eden had changed that. She was the first of the human women to show up on the planet and to earn their trust. The mate of Pyra, the most powerful and revered warrior among them, Eden was not standing with the other human women. Instead, she was kneeling in the sand at the edge of the lake with the Denynso women. This was because she had faced a brutal death at the claws of a Klimnu who had made his way into the compound by guising himself as Pyra. Through his efforts to heal her, Ciyrs, the healer of the clan, had somehow changed her from a human into a Denynso woman. Though she was still small and delicate looking compared to the other women of their kind, she was truly one of them.

The other women had come in turn after her, each with her own reason for visiting the planet, and when they came they found themselves the chosen mates of Denynso men. Their courage to stay on the planet and be with the Denynso was already impressive. It was the incredible intelligence, strength, fortitude, and resourcefulness that they had shown that proved to Bannack that he and the others had been wrong. Of course, they were still far smaller than the Denynso, even Zuri and Samira, the two largest of the group, and were far more emotional as a whole than his kind, but they were also the central reason that the warriors had been able to dominate over the Klimnu in this final battle. It was these human women that found the mirror world, helped develop healing ointments that saved the wounded, and even fought alongside the warriors to enable their victory.

Bannack looked at the human women, and at Eden, her belly swollen with Pyra's child, the first of the new generation of Denynso, with respect and gratitude, but even these comforting feelings were not enough to dampen the fury and aggression that had been tormenting him since they dropped down from the moss-hidden holes in the forest into the mirror world beneath the compound. This was anger and intensity like he had never experienced, and he struggled with understanding what could be creating these feelings inside him when the other warriors didn't seem anywhere near as affected by the battle, or even by Jem's death, as he was. Though they had all expressed their own dark and painful emotions, they all seemed composed and controlled.

Soon Bannack couldn't take it anymore.

Chapter Three

Bannack could hear the warriors behind him shouting as he broke out of their formation and started back toward the compound. He just couldn't stand there with the rest of the warriors anymore. He couldn’t stand there and look at the kneeling women, the stoic king and queen, and the confused, hurting human women. He couldn’t stand there and stare into the purple water, part of him waiting for Jem to simply swim to the edge and climb up out of it with his usual smile on his face, the funeral rite and the funnel of water somehow resurrecting him from his resting place in the reflected sky and allowing him to return to their number. He needed to get away.

He continued into the compound, picking up speed as he went so that he could put the lake and the entire ritual behind him as fast as he could. The emotions churning through him were too dark and too difficult for him to cope with, and he felt like he was losing control. Deep down, however, he knew that this was not all about Jem, or the battle. There was something else at play and it was pushing him ever forward toward the brink of his control over himself. He didn't know what was pushing him or how far he could go, but the thought of what may exist just beyond that threshold of control scared him.

"Bannack!" Pyra yelled from behind him as Bannack made it back into the center of the compound.

Bannack stopped and turned to face the other warriors as they streamed through the compound and joined him. He knew they were going to be angry with him. Leaving a funeral like that was not only extremely disrespectful to the fallen warrior, but to the rest of the tribe that relied on every member to band together during these difficult times and offer each other as much strength and support as possible.

"What?" he demanded as the massive, powerful warrior approached him.

"What the hell do you think you are doing storming out of the funeral like that?" Pyra shouted at him.

"I couldn't just stand there anymore, Pyra. With everything that just happened yesterday, how can we just stay goodbye to Jem and honor his death, and then move on like nothing happened? Like just because the Klimnu are gone, everything is perfectly fine and we should just go about our lives all happy and wonderful."

"What else would you want us to do, Bannack? The Klimnu are gone. The threat is over. It is horrible that Jem had to give his life for that to happen, but any of us would have. He sacrificed himself so that we could continue on with a future that isn't filled with all of the fear and pain and battles that they have put us through over the generations. We owe it to him to acknowledge what he did and honor him by continuing on with our lives."

"Pretending that there is nothing else that could threaten us is not honoring Jem, or anything that the rest of us went through. Jem is not the only one that suffered. We all put ourselves through brutality and pain to protect the clan and the compound. Now you just want us to think that that was it, that the Klimnu are all that could possibly ever want to get in our way or take over our land. What about the mirror world where Jem died? Can you explain that?"

Pyra fell silent and Bannack could see him stiffen. The warriors didn't want to think about that anymore. They didn't want to think about the strange, unexplainable place that none of them knew existed just beneath their feet, and what it could mean for them. Bannack saw Pyra look over his shoulder at the king and queen, who were approaching them quietly, their faces showing that they were as curious about what the warriors had gone through during the battle as Bannack was eager to talk about it and try to figure everything out.

"Is this the mirror world that the women told us about?" Creia asked.

Pyra nodded.

"We haven't heard very much about it."

"Tell them," Bannack demanded, "If you are so sure that there is nothing else to fear now that the Klimnu are gone, why don't you tell Creia, Theia, and the women about what we saw when we were down there?"

He wasn't used to standing up to Pyra like this, and usually he would expect for the head warrior to react strongly, even violently, but Bannack didn't care. He was tired of feeling like he was crawling within his own skin and that he was being ignored. It seemed ridiculous to him that they were all so willing to think that just because they had gotten rid of one source of threat in their lives that there would be nothing else. To him, the battle was only the beginning.

"I'm willing to talk about it," Pyra said slowly.

Creia nodded and turned to the others, who waited several feet away, not knowing what they should do. Eden stood slightly in front of the others, one hand rested over her growing belly protectively as she stared at her mate as if she could control his behavior just by staring intently at his back.

"Those who wish to know what the warriors and our brave human women experienced in the battle may come into the meeting hall with us and hear. Those who are not interested are welcome to go home and do what they please until dinnertime."

There were a few seconds where it seemed that the other warriors, the Denynso women, and the human women seemed to contemplate within themselves, and then with each other, whether they wanted to join in on the conversation about the battle. Some seemed to immediately know that they wanted to know what had happened. Others drifted toward the back of the center of the compound, drawn toward their homes where they could put the mourning behind them and continue forward in the Klimnu-free future that they had dreamed of for their entire lives.

Finally Bannack turned and climbed the stairs into the building, letting the others fall into step behind him. He walked into the main room of the meeting hall and took his place at one of the long tables positioned around the center of the room. Most of the other warriors, all of the human women, and a few of the Denynso women, along with the king and queen, made their way in after them and joined him at the tables.

"Tell us what happened," Theia said as the last person settled into place at the table.

They all had their eyes focused on Bannack, but he turned his gaze to Pyra. No matter what type of anger, frustration, and aggression he was experiencing, he knew that it was his position to respect Pyra. He had already stepped out of line so far that he deserved severe punishment, and it was time now that he relented and resumed the position chosen for him, which meant handing over the control of telling the story of the battle to Pyra.

"Do you remember when Zuri, Samira, and the other women went into the cave and discovered the tunnel that led down to the strange world that they described, where they saw the Klimnu?" Pyra started.

Everyone at the table nodded.

"Of course. That's why you created the battle plan as you did in the first place."

Pyra nodded in return and continued forward, describing the holes in the forest floor that were covered by moss, concealing them, explaining how they used the vines in the trees to attack the Klimnu, and recounting again the last horrific moments of Jem's life. Though Jem had gone into his death courageously, and even joyfully, it had been a crushing moment for everyone that was there. It was especially difficult for Ty, who had tried so hard to save him and who had made the decision to honor Jem's wishes and release him so that he could perform his final feat of heroism.

"Tell us what you're thinking, Bannack," Pyra said.

Bannack looked up and realized that everyone at the table was staring at him. He didn't know how long it had been since Pyra had stopped talking. He had been staring at the dark surface of the table, letting the images of the mirror world cross over his eyes again and again. He couldn't fight them, so he relinquished his mind to them, allowing himself to review them over and over so that he could clarify the details and commit them solidly to memory.

"Who made that mirror world? Was it the Klimnu, or did they steal it like they wanted to steal our compound?"

Chapter Four

Bannack's words seemed to stun the others sitting at the table and he met their eyes carefully. He wanted what he had said to sink in and for them to really think about it. It had been something that he had been thinking about constantly since they first realized that the Klimnu were using the underground realm to infiltrate the compound. It seemed to him that if the Klimnu had had that capacity to create such an incredible, complex space, they would have had been able to put more into their attacks on the Denynso. It didn't make sense to him that a species that had spent generations so devoted to capturing Creia and taking down the entire clan, and who were known for their sparse, rough lifestyle would have put forth the effort to build something so strange, but so beautiful. It struck him as much more likely that the creatures had done what was in their nature and simply taken what they wanted rather than making it for themselves.

"How much do you know about the rest of the planet, Creia?"

The king looked older and more weathered in that moment than Bannack had ever seen him. He didn't know if it was from the strain and stress of the battle or the realization that the peaceful future that he had dreamed of for so long was not yet guaranteed for them.

"Nothing," the king admitted, "The Denynso have been here for the entire existence of our kind. Our home has always been here. The compound has expanded since then, but it has been as it is now for as long as I can remember, and likely well before that."

"So you don't know what other types of creatures might live on Uoria?" Pyra asked.

The tremendous warrior suddenly seemed shaken. He stared at Creia with an expression on his face that seemed at once dismayed, let down, and angry. Bannack could understand exactly what he was feeling. Creia was a powerful and mighty king, one that they followed with absolute loyalty and devotion. He had been on the throne for longer than any of them had been alive, and was, in fact, the father of many of the warriors. To think that he had lived on that compound for his entire life without ever knowing what lay beyond it was disappointing and disheartening.

"It is our tradition to fight only those who threaten us. We have battled with species that have come from other planets, we have fought the Klimnu, and we have struggled against ourselves at times. There has never been the need to venture far out of our compound or to interact with any of the others that may occupy Uoria."

Pyra straightened and Bannack could see the darkness and anger roll over his eyes.

"How have you allowed us to not know what's beyond our compound? The unknown is what made the Klimnu such a brutal force, and what almost allowed them to defeat us. The entire planet is unknown to us. What if there are other creatures who know that we are here and want to come after us?"

"There has never been a threat, Pyra," Creia said sternly, speaking to his son with the tone of both a father and a king.

"Every threat comes after a time when there has been no threat."

Pyra seemed to be fighting to control himself. The anger was building inside him with such force it was visible. Eden reached out a hand and rested it on her mate's arm, looking at him with eyes that pled for him to stay calm.

"Are you questioning my choices as king?" Creia asked, the tone of his voice like a warning.

"I am questioning your decision, as someone who has been the primary focus of the violence and strategic attacks of the Klimnu, to pretend that there couldn't be other threats existing outside the compound. You say that our people have battled creatures from other planets. Why have we been so quick to wage war against species that come from other places in the galaxy, when we don't know anything about the species that live right on our own planet?"

There were several long, tense seconds and the look on Creia's face went from anger to regret.

"I wanted to do as all of the leaders before me have done, and I wanted to do what I thought was right for my people and my family. Staying in and near the compound meant staying safe. If we stayed here, we didn't cause trouble with the others that inhabit the planet. To me, that seemed to reduce the chances that we would be in danger."

"But we are warriors. We are known around the galaxy for that."

"Just because we can go to war, Pyra, doesn't mean that we always have to. I didn't want to watch my children face any dangers that they didn't have to."

Pyra looked at Eden and then back at Creia.

"I am going to have a child of my own soon. I don't want that child born into a world that I don't understand. I have heard about the threat of the Klimnu my entire life. They have been looking for you for as long as I know. They're gone now, but how do I protect my child if I don't even know what I should be protecting him from?"

The mention of his grandchild, the first of the new generation, seemed to change something in Creia. He looked at Eden with painful softness in his eyes. She carried the hope of the future of their kind, and in that moment Bannack could see Creia shift. He couldn't let anything happen to that baby, and that meant finding out what threats could be lurking just outside the compound.

"Start with the mirror world," Creia said, his voice returning to his usual strong, steady tone, "Find out what you can about it. Find out if there are any species that live there, and then report back here. We will decide what to do about the rest of the planet from there."

Without another word, the warriors stood and started toward the door. Zuri, Samira, and Elianna followed closely behind, determined to return to where they had joined in the battle alongside their mates. Eden stayed behind, knowing that Pyra would never allow her to do something as dangerous as wander into an unknown area that had already claimed the life of one of their warriors when she was as far into her pregnancy as she was, and Leia stayed to be with her.

The warriors knew that they would not be able to get down the tunnel in the cave, so they would have to go down into the mirror realm in the same way that they did before the battle. They walked through the compound toward the forest in silence. Bannack could feel the tension among them and knew that they felt the same way that he did. None of them wanted to go back to the site of the battle so soon.

When they got to the forest, Bannack watched as Ero and Pyra pulled away the layers of moss that covered the holes leading down into the mirror realm beneath the compound. Moving slowly and carefully, they climbed down one by one. Bannack followed Pyra, grabbing onto one of the dangling vines as soon as he got deep enough. He wrapped the vine tightly around his wrist and forearm to secure him, and swung over so that he could grab onto the tree.

He concentrated on each of his movements, going slowly and carefully to keep himself from tumbling down toward the bright blue reflection of the sky that looked even more like water rippling across the ground of the massive cavern. Bannack looked up and watched the rest of the warriors make their way down the trees. The human women were last, coming down even more gradually than their warriors due to their smaller size. The warriors watched them intently, ready to catch them if they stumbled. Once they made it all the way down, they gripped onto their mates, holding them closely both to keep themselves steady on the branches that stretched out across the sky and to gain strength and comfort from their presence.

As Bannack looked around, he felt the fury and aggression that had eased slightly roar back into full intensity. His stomach clenched and he felt a strange pressure building throughout his pelvis and down his thighs. He struggled against the feeling, fighting to focus on what Pyra was saying even though his voice seemed to be coming through fog at him. Bannack tightened his grip around the vines, hoping that the pain of the thick plant cutting into his palm would turn his focus from the feelings building inside him. Around him the warriors were strategizing about how to safely and effectively explore the cavern, but all Bannack could think about was the intense, almost irresistible pull he felt toward the back corner.

Chapter Five

I sank as deeply down into the shadows as I could while still being able to see the Denynso and the women I assumed to be the human females that had joined their tribe. The fear coursed through me so powerfully that I felt like I couldn't catch my breath and I struggled to hold myself silent as I watched them. I had, of course, seen them before. They had been there only the day before when they had descended from the moss and struck down the pale, disgusting creatures that had been crawling through my home for many months.

I didn't think that any of them noticed that I was there. Just like during the battle, I stayed out of sight, keeping completely to myself so that they didn't know that I even existed. That was the way that I liked it, the way that it had been for several years since the rest of my kind succumbed to an illness so severe that it burned through our families in a matter of days and killed everyone that it touched. I had no idea why it spared me. There have been many times when I wished that it hadn't. It would have been much simpler to let it take me as it had everyone that I knew and loved. Instead, it left me with the memory of youngest sister disappearing into the sky as I let her slip through my fingers.

The creatures that live on the ground above me have never known that we were here. My grandmother once told me that our kind didn't always live in this cavern. We once lived where the Denynso have settled, but a brutal war with another species and a plague that threatened our very existence drove us down into the cavern, a space that the wisest and most powerful of our species living then transformed into a reflection of the land above, the land that our clan loved so deeply. They had no way of knowing that the plague followed us down. It would be many generations before it struck again, but when it did it did so with a vengeance and only I was left behind.

Now I was more alone than I could ever imagine that a person could be. I was not just the last of my kind, the last of my family and friends. I was the last of a species that had been out of sight for so long that no other species on the planet even remembered that we existed. If anything, I was a myth and a legend.

I could see the men clutching their vines tightly as they scanned the reflection of the sky that covered all of the floor of the cavern that they could see. They all emanated fear and uncertainty, emotions that none of them were accustomed to feeling, and that none of them wanted to admit to the others. They all hated to feel as though there was something that they didn't understand so close to a space that they only knew as their own. The human women were more difficult for me to decipher. Unlike the warriors, who presented themselves as cold as stone on their exteriors but in fact presented their thoughts and feelings quite readily, the women held themselves closer, protecting themselves with their own internal forces so that I had to concentrate intently on each of them to be able to see what they were experiencing inside.

Many times I had heard the legends of the Denynso warriors and their incredible might, both on the battlefield and with their mates. It was said that these massive, forceful men fought with more intensity, skill, aggression, and determination than any other creature that had ever existed among the stars, but when they found their mate, they could be tamed as quickly as a pet. The warriors went through a difficult change when they neared their mate, struggling with their anger, primal force, and arousal until their mate soothed them. The blazing heat of their skin kept all but their intended partner away from them, and once they bonded, it was permanent. I had been told that these partners shared a very special gift that enabled them to communicate with each other through their minds even when they were far apart.

I often wished that my abilities were like that. I didn't read the minds of those I saw. Instead, I looked into them and reflected back to them the essence of who they were; their thoughts, their feelings, and their struggles. Now I was struggling myself, trying to grip what the human women were experiencing as they watched the warriors slowly and carefully extricate themselves from the vines and start to make their way out onto the branches that snaked and intersected across the sky. It was those branches that were perhaps the most brilliant element of the creation of that ancestor of our kind. He designed the cavern so that it reflected the space our species knew as its home so that we could always remember what the land looked like, but with that design came protection.

Those that made their way down into our cavern would see the branches and walk out onto them, thinking that they could make their way across the entirety of the cavern. The branches would only go so far, though, and just like the ones on the ground above, some were weak and could snap in an instant, sending whoever stood upon it tumbling into the unknown beyond the sky. There had been very few who had ventured down to the cavern in recent generations, and none in my lifetime until the Klimnu appeared. When they did, it was the first time that I had been truly thankful for the illness that had taken everyone else. Their deaths had been fast, and though it left me alone, I would have much preferred that to watching my family and loved ones go through the horrors I could only imagine those creatures would have inflicted on us if they had found our colony thriving.

As I watched them, one of the men caught my attention. He was not the largest of the group and he, like the others, were definitely under the control and guidance of the tremendous one that now stepped out onto one of the biggest branches and hunched down to stabilize himself as he made his way out a few feet over the sky. There was something about him, though, that made me not want to turn away. His hair was stark white like the hair of the rest of the warriors, but unlike them, who wore their hair in high, spiky mohawks, his was tightly braided down his back and tied with a stretch of dark fabric. I remembered seeing him in the battle the night before. He had been much the same then, exuding an energy that was wild, unchained, and volatile despite being contained within his quiet exterior.

He looked up in my direction and for a brief moment I thought that he might be able to see me. I sank back further into the shadows and watched him narrow his eyes, the energy within him send out aggressive, powerful waves that drew me in even more. Part of me wanted to reach out to them, to tell them about the cavern and unveil its secrets, but the other part was so frightened and unsure of them that I couldn't move from my spot.

The man I had been watching stepped forward onto one of the branches and my heart tightened. I knew that he had chosen one of the weaker branches and the further he stepped, the more likely he was to fall. Keeping my eyes focused on him, I crept out from behind the low hill where I had been hiding. I lifted my hand to my chest as I made my way quickly, but as quietly as I could, toward the very edge of the bank where the land on this side of the cavern would flow into the sky. They couldn't see me where I was standing. They thought that the sky filled the entire space. Knowing that made me feel more secure, but even if they had suspected that there was something beyond the gradually darkening sky, I wouldn't have stopped.

The man took another step and I heard the low creak of the wood. The growing darkness of the sky was making it more difficult for him to differentiate between the branch and the sky, and he took another step onto one of the smaller outshoots of the branch. He stumbled and I heard a gasp rise out of the human women. One of the warriors started toward him, but I acted first. I tore my necklace from my neck, opening the compact in my hand and thrusting it forward. As the reflection of the stone wall across from me came into view on the bottom portion of the mirrored compact I stepped forward into the sky.

Chapter Six

Bannack heard the sickening sound before he felt the branch beneath his feet crack. Pyra yelled behind him and he heard the women scream. For just a moment the world slowed down and a wave of peace washed over him as if everything around him had gone quiet and calm, and his body could release. Maybe this is what Jem had felt in those seconds before he jumped.

An instant later he felt his body fall forward and he knew that he was going to drop into the sky and discover whatever existed beyond. The branch disappeared from beneath his feet and he felt his body straighten, but it didn't drift downward. Instead, there was a brief moment of falling before he hit something hard and solid. It was as though he had tripped and landed on the hard packed earth and stone of the cliffs, only harder. The impact took the breath out of him, but he didn't feel any pain. He lay still, waiting for something, anything to happen.

Chaos broke around him as the other warriors ran toward him and scooped him up, dragging him back toward the trees before he could even get his feet beneath him. The women were talking so quickly that he couldn’t understand any of the words that they were saying. His mind was reeling. He was aware that he hadn't fallen into the sky like he had expected to even though the branch had broken beneath him, but he had no idea what had actually happened. Suddenly he noticed a faint, pearlescent glow across the cavern. His eyes locked on it and he felt the muscles of his stomach clench. His pants tightened painfully and a wave of confusion rolled over him.

Bannack released the vine he was gripping and took a step toward the edge of the trees again, wanting to get closer to the glow. When it didn't fade or disappear, he took another step toward it. He felt Pyra's hand grab the back of his tunic and try to pull him back, but he lifted his hand to wave him away. He didn't need to be rescued. He wanted to be near the glow and whatever was making it. Though he knew he was only inches away from the edge of the sky, he believe he would be fine when he stepped forward. There was no fear as he lifted his foot away from the trunk and stepped out into the darkness.

His foot again hit solid ground rather than the sky and the confidence built inside him. The validation of that first step propelled him forward and he took another. He could hear Pyra and the other warriors protesting behind him, but the human women argued with their mates, telling them not to follow him. Bannack didn't care whether they followed or not. He continued to walk toward the glow, knowing each time he took a step that the solid ground would be there to meet his feet. As he walked the glow grew brighter and more intense, and soon he realized that there was a figure within the light.

"Hello?" he called out softly as he approached.

There was no response, but he continued forward still. The figure became more defined as he got closer and he realized that it was not actually within the glow but behind it. It seemed to move away from him, but he wasn't worried. He took another step, allowing the slowly retreating glow to lead him forward toward the other side of the cavern. After a few more steps he felt the texture of the ground beneath him change from hard and solid to slightly softer and more resilient. As soon as his feet touched that surface, the bright glow disappeared and out of the corner of his eye he could see the floor behind him go from solid and dark back to a sky awash with stars and a vibrant full moon.

Bannack turned his attention back to where the glow had been and found a woman standing in front of him. The figure that had been standing behind the glow, she was emanating her own very soft light that didn't seem to be coming from within her, but off of her. She wore a long white dress that gently skimmed the lines of her body and stopped with a band across her chest so the soft upper swells of her breasts and her smooth, elegant shoulders were bare. Ties down the front of the dress held it just in place, making the dress and what lie beneath even more intriguing. Pale silver hair flowed to her knees and the eyes that stared back at him from a face so breathtakingly beautiful it didn't seem real, her eyes were a clear, hypnotic lavender. She closely resembled the human women, but it was obvious that she wasn't.

Without a word, she held out one slim, graceful hand and Bannack took it, resting his hand on top so that she could curl her fingers around his coarser skin and draw him closer to her. The nearer he got to her, the more intense the feelings that he had as soon as he stepped into the cavern became, only he was no longer feeling anger or aggression when he was near her. Instead, he felt a sense of power and calm, while the tension through his body seemed to only increase.

"Hello," he said, wanting to make more of a connection with the beautiful creature standing so quietly and calmly in front of him.

"Hello," she replied and her voice was like the delicate, dancing sound of raindrops hitting glass. "Are you alright?"

"Yes," Bannack replied, somewhat startled by the question.

She didn't seem to be asking about whether he had been injured, and the question cut deeply into him.

"My name is Loralia," she said.

"Bannack," he replied.

He realized that she was still holding his hand and despite the cool feeling of her skin, the touch sent warmth throughout his body. She smiled at him softly, but he couldn't decipher what was behind the smile.

"Would your friends like to come to this side of the cavern?" she asked.

"I don't even know how I got over here," Bannack replied, part of him not wanting them to come over and break the small circle of privacy that surrounded them because of their distance from the others.

"I can help them." Loralia released his hand and Bannack felt disappointment ripple through him. "It's alright," she said with a gentle laugh, glancing at him before stepping forward toward the edge of the sky, "I'm right here."

It was as if she knew what he was feeling even though he hadn't said anything, but her confirmation was soothing in a way that made him feel absolutely comfortable and secure. She turned her palm over and in the faint light coming off of her skin and the refraction from the moon he saw what looked like a silver compact in her palm. Loralia held her palm out in front of her and lifted the top of the compact. Immediately the bright glow filled the space again and Bannack realized that the inside of both sides of the compact was mirrored. She tilted the compact until the stone wall across the cavern came into view in the top mirror.

The alignment of the bottom mirror made it so that it reflected the image in the top mirror, showing the wall flat against her palm.

"It's safe now," she called out, her voice so gentle and quiet that Bannack wasn't sure if the others would hear her.

Just as he suspected, none of the warriors or the human women stepped forward.

"She says it's safe," he called out to them.

They looked back at him with uncertainty on their faces, so Bannack took a few steps forward, leaving the softer ground of the bank and stepping again onto the hard, solid ground of the sky. He knew it was going to be there without even looking down.

Bannack taking those few steps seemed enough to convince Zuri, who took let go of Ero and took one large step forward, forgoing easing out over the space and instead going right for an open expanse between two branches. Samira followed, taking a slightly more cautious step, but stopping just beside Zuri. Bannack knew that the warriors not stepping forward was not out of fear, but out of distrust. Finally the men started forward and soon everyone was walking calmly across the expanse toward Bannack.

Suddenly he heard a scream and a deep grunt. He looked toward the back of the group and saw Ciyrs holding Elianna up by her arm as she struggled, her legs kicking down through a small section of the floor that now showed the sparkle of the stars rather than the solid darkness from before.

Chapter Seven

My stomach sank as I watched the tiny human woman drop, but she had had enough of a grip on the Denynso beside her that he was able to catch her before she was lost. Terror rolled over me. If her falling made any of the other ones question the solidity of the ground beneath their feet, they, too, would begin falling. Instead, they all rushed forward, getting off of the expanse of reflected stone as quickly as they could and then turning angry, suspicious eyes toward me.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" the man that had rescued the small woman who fell demanded, taking an aggressive step toward me.

He didn't feel like a warrior. He seemed gentler, calmer, more nurturing despite his attempt to intimidate me.

"Ciyrs," the woman said, grabbing him and pulling him back, "You don’t know that she did anything."

I felt relief wash over me. At least this one seemed to be willing to trust me rather than immediately blaming me.

"What do you think happened, Elianna?" another of the warriors snapped toward the small woman, "She's the one that told us it was all of a sudden safe to walk on the sky, and then as soon as you do, you fall."

"Don't talk to my mate like that," Ciyrs snarled toward the warrior, turning his aggression to him instead of me.

"I'm just pointing out that it's ridiculous for her to defend this person, whoever she is, when she is obviously the one who just tried to kill her."

Suddenly everyone started talking and shouting over top of one another and I felt like I was filling with so many feelings, emotions, and energies that I was going to shatter. I held my hands up and shouted as loudly as I could possibly force my voice.

"Stop it! All of you."

The cavern fell silent and the group turned and looked at me. Bannack seemed startled, but somewhat pleased, at my outburst and he stepped a little closer to me.

"What is it?" he asked.

"I didn't try to kill her," I said, wanting to talk to the entire group but at the same time feeling the compulsion to talk only to him, "It wasn't my fault."

"Then whose fault is it?" Ciyrs demanded.

"Hers," I said matter-of-factly.

"What?" he said roughly and I noticed all of the warriors looking at him with surprised looks on their faces as if he never showed this type of personality toward anyone.

Indeed, I could see the healer within him and knew that this was not in his normal nature. When it came to his mate, however, he was far more intense and aggressive than he would ever be when he was away from her. This made me less angry at the way he had treated me, but I was still not happy.

"In order for a reflection to mean anything, you have to believe in that reflection. If you didn't know what an item was and you saw a reflection of it, you still would not know what it was. You wouldn't embrace its presence and believe in its functions because you wouldn't know about them. If you looked in a mirror and saw something that you thought was something else, you would still believe that that reflection was what you thought it was and that if it was real, it would function the way you expected it to. Reflections only have the meaning that you give them. If you don't believe in the reflection, it can't work for you. She didn’t believe in the stone beneath her feet, so the stone was no longer there."

I expected for them to react strongly again, but they surprised me by seeming to accept what I had told them without further argument. Even if they had argued, there would be nothing else that I could have said to them. It was a very simple concept, though one that may be difficult to grasp for those who hadn't grown up with such rules governing their existence.

"Do you live here?" the largest of the warriors asked me.

"Yes."

"May we look around?"

It was an unusual moment, a moment of balance and control. This was a moment that I had been waiting on for years, a moment when I would no longer be alone and could possibly look forward into a life that was not isolated beneath the ground for the majority of the time, and yet a moment that I also feared. I was so accustomed to being alone and to protecting the space that had once been the home to everyone who I have ever loved that it was frightening to me in a way to think of others entering the deeper areas of the space. I was very aware that nearly every inch of the land ground was a place where someone I cared for had taken their last step or even their last breath, and I had the irrational fear that if these people stepped on those places, they would cover them and diminish the memory of those last moments.

I glanced over at Bannack and found him looking at me, evaluating me. Looking at him offered me a sense of anchoring among the others in a way that I didn't understand. It was as though the rest of the group and I were completely separate entities, but that Bannack could act as a link between us that would close the space.

"Yes," I finally said, offering my permission for them to go further into the cavern.

"This is Loralia," Bannack introduced.

"Hello, Loralia. My name is Pyra."

One by one the warriors and the women introduced themselves to me and I found myself attaching characteristics to each of their names so that I would remember them more clearly later. Zuri was incredibly strong, but adored the way that her mate made her feel feminine and beautiful. Samira held wounds that were still healing, but for the first time in her life, she felt like she belonged. Elianna was vibrant and spirited, but still had a vulnerability in her that seemed to come from an event in the recent past that shaped her now and for the future.

I nodded at each of them as they introduced themselves and tried to offer smiles that would comfort them and ease their worries about me. Once everybody was introduced, Pyra started forward, keeping his eyes trained on me as he moved further into the cavern. There was still a heavy sense of distrust around him as he moved slowly past me and then ventured deeper. The others followed him, gazing around as they moved beyond the hill where I had been hiding when they first entered and stepped down into the expansive chamber that dipped lower and contained the first collection of small buildings that were once home to my friends and family. Two tunnels led off of this chamber, each leading to another chamber containing more buildings.

Off of these chambers were two more tunnels that fed together into one narrow corridor that led deep into the cavern to the chamber that our kind used as its greatest source of protection. When there were threats, we would gather there, utilizing our mirrors to reflect a solid wall over the mouth of the cavern so that no one could enter. I spent much of my time there, forgoing the home I once shared with my parents and siblings to live in the protecting surroundings of this nearly empty chamber.

"There is a tunnel that leads off of that first room and goes up into the cliffs at the edge of our compound," Pyra said.

It seemed more a statement than a question, but I replied anyway.

"Yes. I haven't used it in many years."

"Are there any other tunnels that lead into the cavern from above ground?"

"No. The only way to enter is that tunnel and the hatches in the forest."

"How often do you go above ground?"

The change in voice made me turn to Bannack, who was still standing close beside me. There was a faintly desperate look in his eyes and I could feel the sense that he was trying to understand of the emotions rolling through him, as if knowing how often I walked on the same ground as he did.

"Never," I told him, keeping my voice as even and calm as I could in an effort to assure him.

"How do you survive down here without ever going up?"

"The cavern provides everything that I need. There are plants throughout the cavern and a stream in the middle chamber. I was born down here and have always been here."

"Will you come up with us now?"

My eyes widened and I saw Pyra look sharply at Bannack, but he didn't say anything. My warrior, for that is how I was beginning to think of him, was staring at me intently and I saw him lift his hand toward me.

I hesitated only a moment before placing my fingers against the warmth of his palm and seeing the hint of a smile touch his lips.

Chapter Eight

Bannack wrapped his hand around Loralia's fingers as soon as he felt their cool touch on his palm and turned to Pyra.

"We said that we wanted to learn more about the other species that are on this planet. Why don't we let her tell us?"

Pyra agreed and they started back toward the front of the cavern, allowing Loralia to use her compact to change the glimmering night sky spread across the floor into the hardened stone of the wall so that they could walk across it. Just like he had since the first time he had walked toward her, Bannack believed completely in the safety of the ground beneath his feet and crossed without hesitation, his hand cradling Loralia's beside him. The others paused briefly at the edge and Bannack saw them take a few breaths as if preparing themselves and convincing themselves that the ground would be solid when they stepped forward.

"Where are the others of your kind?"

Loralia looked up at Creia where he sat on his massive throne without flinching. Bannack found himself watching her in awe, admiring how she could go from an underground realm she had always known to facing the king of an above ground species without showing any sign of intimidation or fear.

"There are no others," Loralia told him calmly, "I am the last of my kind."

"What happened to them?"

"There was a plague several years ago. I am the only one to survive."

Whispers rippled through the meeting hall and Bannack turned to glare at the others, suddenly protective and defensive. He knew that no matter how Loralia was handling herself in that moment as she faced down the king, confronting a strange species that was far larger and more powerful than her, and that she had always heard were the ones who had taken over the land her kind had once inhabited after war and illness drove them underground, had to be frightening to her. He didn't want the reaction of the rest of the Denynso to upset her further.

Bannack turned his attention back to Creia, who looked at his wife in a way that told Bannack that the mates were communicating silently. Theia turned to Loralia and he saw the gentle, nurturing look in her eyes that made her the mother figure of all of the Denynso.

"You are welcome here, Loralia," she said warmly, "You may stay with us for as long as you would like."

Bannack wasn't sure how Loralia was going to react, but he saw her take the few steps up toward the platform where the thrones sat and reach her pale, lovely hands toward the queen. Theia stood from her throne and approached Loralia as if she were as drawn to her as Bannack felt, and took the beautiful woman's hands in hers.

"Thank you."

Loralia's voice was so gentle Bannack could barely hear it, but he felt a little jump in his heart when he realized that she had accepted the queen's invitation to stay. The conflict he felt when he looked at her was so intense it made his stomach twist painfully. As much as he wanted to be near her, and the intense way his body responded whenever he looked at her, he was still extremely aware that she was a completely different, unknown species. He knew nothing about her or her kind, and part of him was still extremely wary about getting close to her.

Bannack jumped when he felt a heavy hand land on his shoulder. He looked up to see Ero standing beside him.

"What are you thinking about so hard over here?" the other warrior asked.

"Her," Bannack said, nodding toward Loralia, "How is it possible that she has been living right underneath us her entire life and not only did we not know she was there, we didn't even know that there was a place for anything to live down there? From what she said, her species has been down there since long before the Denynso even existed. We have lived right over top of her kind for generations, but there was never any interaction."

"So?"

"So? Doesn't that make you suspicious? If they have been down there that whole time, they would know when the Denynso settled. Why did they just stay down there and not come up and try to make contact?"

"Maybe they didn't feel like they had any reason to. There was never any conflict, so why shake things up? Isn't existing peacefully what matters?"

Bannack looked back at Loralia.

"I don't know. It just seems weird to me. I don't know how I feel about her staying around here."

"You are the one that quite literally took her by the hand and brought her here. Why did you do that if you didn't want her here?"

Bannack sighed.

"I don't know," he answered honestly, "I just felt like it was what I should do in that moment."

Ero looked at him and Bannack saw his mouth twitch like he was fighting a smile. The other warrior nodded and his eyes traveled briefly down Bannack's body.

"Yep," Ero said, patting Bannack on the back, "I'm sure you did."

Ero walked away, heading back across the meeting hall toward Zuri. Confused, Bannack glanced down and saw exactly what had called Ero's amused attention to the lower half of his body. Muttering expletives under his breath, Bannack tried to adjust himself as quickly and subtly as he could to make his raging erection less obvious. Just as he was finishing, he saw Creia look up at him and gesture for him to come to the platform. By now both the king and queen were standing at the edge of the platform and as Bannack approached he saw them grin happily at him.

"I hear you have met our new friend," Creia said, reaching out to touch his hand to Bannack's shoulder.

"Yes," Bannack replied.

"She has accepted our invitation to stay with us and she requested that you be her guide and protector while she is here."

Bannack looked over at Loralia and found her gazing back at him, the lavender of her eyes so intoxicating he felt like he was falling into them. He felt her hand intertwine with his again and his erection twitched. The frustration and confusion built inside him and he felt painfully torn. He knew that he couldn't deny the king and queen his service as her protector, but the way his heart and body were responding to him made him feel both excited and repelled. She was at once the most beautiful and intriguing creature that he had ever seen, and something that made him uncomfortable.

"I will," he answered.

"Good. Bring her to the house where Samira was going to live," Creia turned back to Loralia, "I hope that you will be comfortable there."

"I'm sure I will," Loralia responded, "Thank you for your kindness."

Bannack gave a nod toward the king and queen and led Loralia out of the meeting hall, forcing himself to keep his eyes trained forward rather than letting them wander over to her or to acknowledge the group of warriors sitting at one long table, watching him and muttering comments as they passed. He knew what they were saying, but he didn't want to acknowledge it.

Loralia took a deep breath as they stepped out of the building and into the quiet center of the compound.

"I love the way the air smells up here," she said, "It's so different from the cavern."

"I'm glad you like it," Bannack replied gruffly, not turning his eyes toward her.

Finally they arrived at the simple house on the same row as the other homes the Denynso reserved for the scientists and students who had been invited to visit Uoria as part of the exchange program. He opened the door for her and stepped back to allow her to enter in front of him.

"Will you come in with me?" she asked gently. Bannack hesitated. "It's the first night that I've spent away from the cavern in my entire life. I don't want to be alone just yet. Please just spend a few minutes with me."

No matter what he tried to tell himself, Bannack couldn't resist her request. He stepped forward into the house and let Loralia close the door behind him.

"The solar panels collect energy throughout the day so you can use the lights and heat water for a shower."

Bannack turned back to Loralia and saw her staring at him.

"Why are you fighting it?" she asked, taking a step toward him.

Chapter Nine

I could see the confusion flicker across his eyes, but the intense feelings were still radiating toward me as I walked slowly toward Bannack. His gaze traveled along me, exploring the curves and planes of my face and the dips of my body, but I could still sense the internal struggle that was keeping him from admitting what was coursing through his mind and his veins.

"Fighting what?" he finally asked me, his voice strained slightly.

"What you are feeling right now."

I was only two steps away from him now, close enough that I could feel intense, powerful heat pulsing off of his body and see the swell in the front of his loose-fitting pants.

"Can you read my thoughts?" he asked defensively, obviously uncomfortable with not only the concept that I would be able to get into his mind and read what was there, but what the implications of that ability would be if I was to be able to do it.

Still staring at the front of his pants, I bit my bottom lip and shook my head slowly, finally lifting my eyes to his.

"No," I said, "but I can sense what you're feeling. I can look into you and see and feel what is inside you. I know what you're thinking about right now, and I want to know why you are fighting it."

He didn't respond and I lifted my hands to the ties at the front of my dress. I released them slowly and carefully, deliberately looking into his eyes as I did. The ties stretched from my neckline down to the center of my stomach and I loosened them all the way down. Once the ties had fallen loose, the bodice of my dress slipped down, revealing my breasts. Bannack cleared his throat and looked away, but I didn't stop. I could feel my hair sweep across my bare back as I carefully pushed the dress down over my hips and let it pool at my feet. I was barefoot as I always was, so when I stepped out of the soft white fabric and gently kicked it aside, I was standing in front of Bannack in only a pair of thin, finely woven panties that tied at either hip.

"Why do you keep fighting?" I asked again, taking another step toward him so that only one more step separated us.

Bannack shifted where he stood, looking around as if he couldn't find something to rest his eyes on so that he didn't look at me.

"I can't feel this way about you," he finally said and I felt a little flicker in my belly.

"Feel what way about me?" I asked.

He looked at me and the confusion in his eyes had turned dark and mixed with the desire coursing through his body.

"You know exactly what way," he nearly snarled.

"Of course you can feel that way," I said.

"And why is it so easy for you to just say that?" he asked.

The tension in his voice said that he was being sarcastic, but at the same time he was truly asking me.

"Because," I said, taking hold of the strings on either side of my panties, "you already do."

I pulled the strings, releasing the ties and letting my panties fall free away from my body. I could feel what was inside him more intensely in that moment than I had in any other except for the very first moment when I saw him in the cavern. I had known immediately and the feeling building inside me was something that I had never experienced. The longer I looked at him, the more I realized that what I was feeling was not a matter of a simple reflection. I had fallen completely under his spell and I was helpless to resist him, even if he was trying to resist what he was feeling himself.

Bannack's eyes shifted briefly into a dark orange and I saw his hands clench, tightening into fists as if he was fighting to control his body as much as his mind. I closed the space between us with a final step, bringing us close enough that my breasts brushed against him and I could feel his erection straining toward me. I reached up and touched his cheek, guiding his face so that he looked down into my eyes. The pad of my thumb stroked over his lips and Bannack's eyes drifted closed. I could feel the breath stream from his lungs and ripple from the inside of my wrist down my arm. The warm feeling made my nipples tighten and I felt a tingle slip down between my thighs.

I walked around Bannack further into the house, making my way toward the furniture arranged in the middle of the main room. After a few steps, Bannack followed me. We didn't speak, but our hands expressed more than words could have in that moment. He approached me and I took the end of the tie that closed his pants in one hand. As I loosened it, my warrior cupped one of his hands around my breast and ran his thumb across my nipple, making it ache. His pants slipped down his hips to his feet and he stepped out of them and his soft boots at the same time. As he pulled his shirt off over his head, I rested my palm against his long, hard shaft and wrapped my fingers around it. I stroked him carefully but insistently, watching my hand in awe as it moved across his erection.

I felt his finger tuck under my chin and lift my face up to his. There was a still, quiet moment, and then he leaned forward to touch his lips to mine. The kiss filled me as if it gave me breath, satisfying something deep within me that I hadn't even known needed fulfillment until I saw him for the first time. Our mouths moved across each other languidly, tenderly and carefully discovering the feeling and taste of each other's lips and welcoming each other's tongues to slip between, tangling and exploring.

Bannack stepped forward, pushing me back so that he could turn and sit down in the large chair I had been standing beside. Our mouths parted and I could hear our heavy breaths filling the space around us, accentuating the silence we had maintained. Bannack's strong hands turned me and eased me back so that I sat on his lap, moving my hair aside so that it cascaded down his thing and along the front of the chair. His body cradled me, surrounding me in his warmth and the strength of his presence. He wrapped his arms around me and I let my head rest back against his shoulder.

We remained still for several long seconds, our breaths synchronizing as his heartbeat created an enticing yet comforting rhythm against my back. His hand flattened in the middle of my chest and smoothed its way down my body, pausing in the dip between my hipbones. I could feel myself trembling and my breath caught in my throat as he applied gentle pressure. No one's hands had ever touched me and I found myself overwhelmed with the sensation of his body so close to mine and his hand easing down between my thighs.

Bannack's other hand carefully parted my legs to give himself better access, keeping his grip on my thigh as if providing stability. The first touch of his fingers in the warmth of my body sent shockwaves through me and I cried out, arching off of him so that he took his hand way from my thigh and rested it on my belly, easing me back down into his lap. I let the strength of his hand on stomach relax and reassure me, and my body rested down against him. Releasing the tension in my thighs, I allowed my knees to fall open further and welcomed his touch. Bannack's fingers explored my hot, wet folds, building dizzying sensations and tension throughout my hips, thighs, and lower belly.

Suddenly the feelings shattered within me and a cascade of intense tremors rippled through my body. My hips lifted up out of his lap and I felt his strong, powerful erection slip from behind my back to in front of me. I tucked my hand around it, pressing it against my body so that he could feel the warm wetness that he created. Acting purely on instinct, I rolled my hips, letting my core run along his length until I could hear him groaning behind me. I wanted him inside me in a way that I had never wanted anything. I lifted my hips, readying myself to guide him to my entrance, when I felt Bannack's hands suddenly tighten on my hips.

"Stop."

Chapter Ten

Bannack held his shirt under his arm as he rushed out of Loralia's house, tying the strings on the front of his pants and trying to block her voice out of his ears. He could hear her behind him, shouting for him, calling for him to come back, but he forced the sound away and kept forging ahead, dropping his shirt down over his body and setting out at a run. The thoughts and emotions rushing through his mind had reached a fevered pitch when he felt the intoxicating, entrancing warmth of her body against him and he just couldn't let himself keep going. As much as he wanted her, and it was far more than he could ever have imagined wanting anyone or anything in his entire life, he hadn't been able to silence the conflicts and questions raging in his head.

"Bannack!"

A different voice forced itself into his consciousness and he paused to turn toward it. Ero was running toward him across the compound. Ero was always running. It was something that he had done since he was young to combat his own feelings and escape whatever was bothering him at the moment. He used to run out of fear and anger, but since he had found Zuri he ran only to amuse himself and when he was needed.

"What is it Ero?" he asked, the question coming out sharper and angrier than he had intended.

"Pyra told me to get all of the warriors in the meeting hall."

"For what?"

"I don't know. He seemed really serious about it, though."

"Does he know that Creia assigned me as Loralia's protector?"

"Why would that have anything to do with him wanting you at the meeting hall? Besides, if you are her protector, why aren't you with her?"

The question fell like a rock into Bannack's gut and he shook his head, trying to shake the images of the time he had just spent with the gorgeous, confounding creature. Ero seemed to know not to push the issue and the two warriors hurried toward the meeting hall in silence. When they got inside, the main room bustled with voices and an argument seemed to be going on at one of the long tables.

Suddenly Pyra jumped up onto the table so that he was visible above the heads of the other warriors and Denynso men who had gathered around him. Bannack looked around and saw Creia sitting silently on the platform, staring at the men with a look on his face that was at once worried and pleased.

"If you aren't brave enough to come with me, then don't," Pyra shouted and some of the warriors shouted back at him, "I'm going. The king has given me permission and I am going to take it. I've already discussed it with Eden, and she agrees that we don't want to bring our baby into this world until we know what kinds of threats, and what kinds of opportunities, may exist outside of our compound. She may be close to delivery, which means that I need to go soon if I am to be back by the time the baby arrives."

"Where are you going?" Bannack shouted up toward the warrior.

Pyra looked down at him.

"I'm going to explore Uoria outside of the compound. There are other species out there that we don't know anything about, and I want to change that. Eden, Leia, Elianna, Zuri, and Samira all came here from Earth because the humans want to know more about our kind, yet we haven't even gone so far as the other side of our own planet to find out what might be there."

"When are you leaving?"

"Three days. I need the time to get together all of the supplies that I might need while I'm gone." He straightened and looked out over the group of warriors. "Who's with me?"

There was defiance in his voice, a sense of strength and defensiveness that seemed to come from the idea that there were things he couldn't protect his mate and future child from because he didn't know what they were or what they might do. It enraged him, and as the fiercest and most aggressive of the warriors already, that was intimidating to see.

A few of the other warriors yelled back up to him, but Bannack turned and ran toward Creia's platform.

"Are you alright, Bannack?" the king asked as he approached.

"May I have permission to have a leave from my responsibilities to Loralia and go with the other warriors?" Bannack asked, ignoring Creia's question.

The king hesitated.

"She is new to our compound, Bannack. She specifically asked if you would be her guide. That must mean that she trusts you."

"I understand that, but I feel that I would be better serving the tribe if I went with the warriors and helped explore the planet. I'm sure that the human women would be happy to keep an eye on Loralia and help her get accustomed to the compound. They would probably do better than me anyway."

"Why do you say that?"

"Because they're different, too."

"Different?"

The king seemed to be testing Bannack in some way, but he didn't have the patience to explore what he might mean.

"They aren't Denynso. They are a different kind, so they know what it's like to be a strange species among the tribe. It might make her feel better to spend some time with them."

"I'll give you permission to go with the warriors, Bannack, if you are able to convince the women to take on your role as protector. But listen carefully when I tell you to think about your decision, and your reasoning, carefully."

Bannack nodded his thanks and ran back across the meeting hall. He couldn't get the taste of Loralia's lips or the feeling of her body on his fingers out of his mind no matter how hard he found them, and he knew that he had to get to the women so that he could get them on his side and start preparing for the journey. He, like the other Denynso, had never ventured away from the compound, but right now getting as far away from his home, and from Loralia, as possible seemed like the only thing that he could do.

He got to the edge of the table where Pyra stood and shouted up at him over the voices of the other warriors who still seemed to be locked in a debate over whether they should go at all. Many thought that it would better serve them to concentrate on building up the defenses of the compound before they started searching for threats.

"Where's Eden?" Bannack asked.

"She's at the bakery with Samira. Why do you need her?"

"Creia says that the only way I can go with you is to get the human women to agree to watch over Loralia while I'm gone."

"Why?"

"She chose me as her protector."

A smile crossed Pyra's lips, but Bannack refused to acknowledge it. He pushed away from the table and ran out of the meeting hall toward the bakery. The smell of fresh, hot bread greeted him as soon as he opened the door.

"I need your help," he said and saw Eden jump slightly where she was sitting on a high stool near the counter where Samira was rolling out long ropes of dough to form into braided loaves.

"Is everything alright?"

"I want to go with the warriors to explore Uoria, but I need someone to watch Loralia while I'm gone. She chose me as her protector and guide, and the king says that I can only have permission to go with Pyra if you will agree to watch over her while we're gone."

The two women exchanged glances. If he didn't know better he would think that they were communicating with their minds in the same way that mates could. Eden's hand wandered to her belly like it so frequently did and she seemed to press into a certain area as if she could feel the baby through her skin.

"Are you sure that's what you want?" Eden asked.

Bannack was growing impatient with being questioned. Everyone seemed to think that they knew something he didn't, and it frustrated him. He nodded, not wanting to give her the satisfaction of acknowledging her seeking tone.

"I want to know what's outside this compound. I'm tired of seeing the same things and going the same places. There's more out there and I want to know what it is, but the only way I can do that is to unload Loralia."

"You're the one who brought her here."

"So I've been reminded," Bannack said through gritted teeth.

"If you're sure that's what you want, Bannack, I'll be happy to help her get used to the compound."

"Thank you."

Bannack stepped back out of the bakery and took a deep breath of the night air, hoping it would cool the burning on his cheeks. He didn't know what he wanted anymore, other than to get away.

(To be continued in Part II…)

Book 2 – The Alien’s Promise

Chapter One

I didn't know how to feel or what to do. I stood at the doorway to the house, what was meant to be my new home, staring into the darkness for what felt like hours after Bannack left. Finally I stepped back into the house and closed the door behind me, pressing my back against it and sliding to the floor so that I could curl my knees against my chest and rest my forehead against my folded arms. Everything around me in the Denynso compound was strange and unknown, and now suddenly I was feeling a pain that I never knew existed, with an intensity that was far beyond anything I thought that I could ever feel. The air around me felt oppressive, while the places on my body that Bannack had touched now felt cold and abandoned. I felt empty inside, both in that my heart felt torn from my chest and in that my body still ached for him even though he had left so abruptly. I couldn’t understand what had just happened.

I sat against the door, letting the darkness of the coming night close in around me without moving to turn on any of the lights throughout the space. Everything had been going so perfectly. The feelings that I had experienced for Bannack since the first moment that I saw him had grown within me until they felt like they were burning in my belly and overflowing within my chest, creating a sense that made me at once overwhelmed and elated. I had been so young when the rest of my kind had died off due to the horrific plague that scourged our home that I had never had the opportunity to feel love, or even real attraction, to anyone. I had seen my parents together and how they felt about each other was obvious. I could remember even then how they would hold hands, gaze at each other, and find any excuse to be close to each other, even after they had spent more than half of their lives together. I hadn't understood that until I had seen Bannack.

Being alone in the mirrored realm that existed beneath the Denynso compound had been isolating and lonely, but I had grown accustomed to my life alone underground. Over the years I had become absolutely comfortable with not having anyone else with me, and even felt that I preferred the quiet and isolation because it meant that I could live exactly as I wanted to and have no one and nothing to tell me otherwise. When the Klimnu invaded, the terror had been more that they would change my lifestyle than that they would hurt me, and I had managed to stay completely out of the way the entire time that they were down there. Even when I saw the human woman and the Denynso traitor, and then the other human women, come into the mirrored realm, I felt no compulsion to interact with them. I had hoped that the Klimnu would simply tire of my world and leave me alone so that I could go back to my simple, independent life and not have to worry about anything else.

The moment that my eyes touched Bannack, however, all of that changed. Everything around him disappeared. I couldn't perceive the other warriors or the slimy, disgusting creatures that were battling them. It was as though nothing else in the entire world mattered in those moments but this beautiful warrior who in a single second changed everything about how I felt about life. Suddenly I didn't want to live completely alone underground anymore. I didn't want to continue on with the lifestyle that I had built and evolved into after my family and friends had died. I didn't want to be left to my own devices, or to have a life that was totally my own. In that instant I could understand why my parents spent nearly all of their time together, and why when my father died, my mother followed him only hours later even though she had barely been sick.

He, of course, didn't know it, but I had watched the entire battle between the Klimnu and the Denynso. I had followed him carefully in each of his movements, making sure that he stayed safe as he fought. I didn't even know his name then, but I could feel the intensity of his presence and the energy emanating off of him in a way that I had never experienced. In the final moments of the battle, I had saved him. He stumbled while trying to approach Jem, the incredibly courageous warrior who had given his life to ensure the future of his people, and a moment later caught himself. He thought that he had simply managed to find his footing and regain his hold on the vine that was coming from the tree where he stood. In reality, I had reflected the surface of the tree so that he could step steadily onto it before finding his way back to his original stance.

The action had been risky. I nearly betrayed my existence in that single moment, but I was willing to do anything in order to ensure that he got through the battle safely. It was a decision that I had made impulsively, without really thinking, and it hadn't struck me until I saw him again the next day and had the compulsion to again save him from tumbling into the reflection of the sky by creating a floor of the image of the stone wall that it was him that I had saved. It was as if I was reacting to a memory that I hadn't made yet, a thought or a feeling that I had deep within me that wasn't really there but was waiting to be there. It was difficult even for me to explain, but something that I wanted to feel more of.

The glow of my skin was even more evident in the room now that I was cloaked in complete darkness and I thought about the first time that Bannack saw me. He had felt something when he got down into the mirrored realm. Something within him had told him that things were changing and that he was about to experience something that would forever change him, but no matter how hard I tried to look into him, I couldn't figure out exactly what that was. When he noticed my glow across the sky, however, that feeling had intensified and I knew that he felt the same draw and need about me that I was feeling about him.

He had trusted me then. He had given himself over to me and to the unknown that waited when he took a completely unafraid step away from the branches that crossed the reflected sky and created the only source of stability that they knew down in my world, and onto the stone floor that I had made for him. There had been no sense of fear in him, or even unsureness. It was as though he knew, even if he had no concept of what or who I was, that he was safe as long as I was there.

What had happened between that moment and the moment when he ran out of the house and into the darkness of the night without a single word of explanation? He had taken my hand in my world beneath the compound, led me out of the ground and literally into a world that I had never once seen or experienced. I had offered myself to him in the way that he had offered himself to me, stepping into something that I had only heard about and never once witnessed myself, for the first time in my solitary existence truly wanting to go above ground, and for the first time in the years since I had become accustomed to being alone that I had wanted to put that life behind me and share life with someone else.

In those moments I felt a connection between us that was only growing with each second. Resistance had begun to build inside him, though, and he had started to fight the feelings that I knew he had when he looked at me. He didn't need to say them. I could feel them when he touched me, when he rested his mouth to mine, and when he tucked his hand between my thighs to create unimaginable sensations and emotions within me. Just before I welcomed his body into mine, however, he moved me off of him and started to dress. I had dropped my dress over my head and tied the laces as quickly as I could, but it wasn't fast enough to stop him from crossing to the door, his shirt clutched in his hand, and running out into the darkness of the compound.

My own voice screaming after him was reverberating in my mind and tears like I hadn't cried since I was a small child pooled beneath my eyes and poured down the skin of my arms where my head rested. He had given me no explanation, offered no reason for suddenly leaving me in the silence aching for him, but in that moment I felt more alone than I ever had.

Chapter Two

Bannack paced outside of the bakery for a few minutes, not really knowing what he was supposed to do with himself, and trying to convince himself that the decision he had made was the right one. After all, he had been the one to bring up the fact that the Denynso, including Creia, the king who they all looked up to and thought of as being the most powerful and knowledgeable of them all, didn't really know anything about the rest of the planet of Uoria or what types of species inhabited their planet. It had been this assertion and his insistence that they find out what was going on that brought them back down into the mirrored realm that they had discovered during the final battle with the Klimnu. If that hadn't happened, they never would have found Loralia at all, and the rest of the warriors, particularly Pyra, wouldn't have agreed with him about how important it was to go out and find out more about the planet.

The fact that the warriors were now planning on leaving the compound for the first time and going on an exploration of the rest of the planet so that they could see what they might discover and potentially identify future threats to them was based entirely on his determination and his recommendations. It was only logical and fair that he be permitted to go along with them. He had not asked Loralia to request him as her guard and protector while she was in the compound. While he had been the one who had asked her to come up above ground in the compound with them, it had not been his idea for the king and queen to invite her to stay with them once they found out that she was the only one left of her kind. He should not be held responsible for the wellbeing of a creature who he didn't know and who he had not pledged his loyalty to until forced.

The more he paced and the harder he thought, the closer Bannack was to convincing himself that asking the human women to take on the responsibilities of taking care of Loralia and making sure that she got assimilated to her new surroundings so that he could join the other warriors in the quest outside the compound was not only fair, but truly his only choice. If he had agreed to stay behind with Loralia rather than going with Pyra, Gyyx, Ero, and the others, he would have compromised his position as a warrior and presented himself as being a coward. He also would have shorted himself an opportunity to learn things that no other Denynso had ever known, possibly putting himself and the rest of the compound at risk should he ever come into contact with one of the species that the warriors found during their explorations.

Even though he had made himself believe he was fully justified in walking away from his responsibilities with Loralia, he still couldn't entirely convince himself that walking away from her, or more precisely running away from her, after he brought her home was the right thing to do. He was incredibly torn, more conflicted than he had ever been in his entire life. Loralia was the single most beautiful thing that he had ever seen, and even before he had laid eyes on her, his mind and body had started responding to her presence. Just being near her made his defensive, aggressive instincts kick in stronger than they ever had even in the many battles he had faced. As soon as he saw her, he was instantly entranced by her. She was ethereal and gorgeous in a way that was truly indescribable. The gentle glow of her skin, incomparable lavender color of her eyes, and flowing silver hair made her look as though she were not quite real, as if she were a delightful figment of his imagination conjured in a moment of near-death to soothe and comfort him.

The touch of her hand and the smell of her skin, though, told him that she was absolutely not a figment of his imagination or some wonderfully lucid dream. She was incredibly real, real in a way that he could not quite fathom and was not ready to believe. Loralia created in Bannack feelings that he didn't want to admit to himself much less anyone else, and the more he felt them, the more he wanted to force them down into himself so that they couldn't be felt, seen, or experienced. This was not the way it was supposed to be. He had not waited his entire life to find his mate only to find himself falling for a creature that belonged to a species he hadn't even known existed until that day.

He hated himself for the betrayal of his mind and body, and for not being able to control himself. He hated himself even more than that lack of control had led him to nearly mating with her. If he had waited just seconds longer he would have felt her body envelope him, and he would have known for sure if she was what he feared his mind was trying to tell him that she was. Bannack had not been ready for that moment of clarity. He didn’t know which answer he dreaded more, or how he would have responded to either one. In that moment all he knew was that he needed to get away from her, and that he didn't want to be in the same room with her again for a very long time.

Even as he thought that, though, he knew that he was lying to himself. No matter how hard the two sides of him struggled and fought, he couldn't deny that he still felt incredibly drawn to Loralia, and that more than anything he wanted to be near her.

"Bannack."

He heard Eden's voice from behind him and he turned to look at her. She had her hand rested protectively over her swollen belly like she usually did and the little bit of weight that she had gained in her face during her pregnancy made her look softer and gentler than she had when she first arrived on the planet.

"What's going on with you?" Eden asked, lowering her voice as though she wanted to keep the conversation private.

"What do you mean?" Bannack asked, trying to force his voice to sound casual.

"I know you, Bannack. I know when you aren't telling the whole truth, and right now a big part of you is lying. Asking me and the other girls to take care of Loralia isn't just about wanting to go wander around the planet with the other warriors. What is it actually about?"

Sometimes Bannack really hated how in tune to emotions that the human women seemed to be. The Denynso women weren't like that. They were gentler and more feeling than the men tended to be, but they were still aggressive and gruff compared to the humans. He could only imagine how much more difficult it was for their Denynso mates. Part of the mating process for their kind was creating an unbreakable link during the actual bonding. This link made it possible for the mates to communicate with one another without having to speak, which meant that not only were the human women able to tell when their mates were dealing with an emotional situation, they could actually read their thoughts and find out exactly what was going on if the Denynso men weren't careful to control what was going through their minds. It seemed overwhelming to be that close to someone else.

"I just want to go with the other warriors," he said, "It was my idea to find out more about the other species anyway."

He realized that he sounded like he was whining, but he didn't really care. He was dealing with enough of his own confused thoughts and feelings to think about trying to seem tough and put together.

"Alright. Don't tell me if you don't want to. Just know that I know that there is something else going on, and eventually we are going to all figure it out."

She turned and headed back into the bakery. Bannack had absolutely no doubt that what the little red-haired human woman had said was the truth. They were smart, crafty, and extremely capable. Not only could they find out what he was going through if they wanted to, they would, and they would do their best to interfere until they helped him find a solution. That just meant he needed to get out of the compound and away from Loralia as quickly as possible.

Chapter Three

I don't know how long I sat on the floor, my back against the door to the house that was meant to be my home but was feeling more and more like a strange and unwelcoming prison with every second. Part of me wanted so much to go out into the compound and look for Bannack so that I could ask him what happened and hope that he could give me some explanation for running away from me like that. Maybe there was an element of his species that I didn't know about that had made him leave. He had asked me if I had read his mind, and he seemed frustrated and almost angry when he asked me. Perhaps there was something more to that question than I had originally thought. If the people of this species could easily communicate with each other through their minds, it was possible that one of them had reached out to Bannack and told him that he was needed somewhere else. The loyalty and sense of duty that came with being a warrior would mean that he felt compelled and inarguably obligated to go where he was needed.

Though it didn't fully explain why Bannack hadn't responded to me when I called for him after he left, or why he didn't simply tell me why he was leaving, telling myself that there could be an explanation behind his sudden departure did soothe me in a way. I still felt hurt and upset, not so much angry as I was simply brokenhearted. I knew that the feelings that had built inside me so intensely happened very quickly, but I had never once felt like they were forced or that I was moving beyond what he was feeling as well. In that moment it struck me that even though I hadn't thought that I was moving too quickly, my understanding of the love and relationship rituals of my own kind was minimal, and I knew absolutely nothing about the relationships of the Denynso. I realized that it was possible that I had offended him in some way, and that thought made me feel sick to my stomach. The idea that in my haste to explore what I was feeling toward him I had pushed my warrior away and ended the possibility that we would ever be together made me wish that I had never come above ground.

I was just beginning to stand up, planning to go to sleep and see how I felt about everything in the light of the morning, when I heard a knock on the door behind me. My heart jumped in my chest. I hoped that it was Bannack, come back to explain what happened and perhaps resume where we had left off. I straightened my dress, smoothed away the last of the tears that were still lingering on my cheeks, and opened the door. As soon as I did, the smile faded from my face. Instead of Bannack standing outside, it was two of the human women that I had met when they came underground with the warriors along with one who had been in the meeting hall when Bannack brought me to meet the king and queen of their people.

The expression on my face must have given away my disappointment at seeing them rather than Bannack because they all narrowed their eyes slightly and looked concerned.

"Is everything alright?" the one I remembered as Zuri asked.

I nodded, trying to muster a smile that would assure them that I was fine.

"Are you sure?" the lovely, rather heavily pregnant one asked.

If it was possible, her belly looked slightly more swollen than when I had first seen her and I could feel that she was tired and somewhat anxious. I could only imagine that carrying a child at all would be stressful, but I had also noticed that there didn’t seem to be any other pregnant women, babies, or children at all throughout the compound. The youngest people I had seen were some of the warriors who looked only a few years younger than me.

"Is there something wrong with the house? Are the lights not turning on?" Zuri asked.

All of the attention coming from them was becoming overwhelming and I felt bombarded even though I knew that they had come to me out of concern and genuine desire to welcome me to the compound. I stepped back and held out a hand to invite them to come inside.

"Everything is fine," I told them, "I haven't turned on any of the lights yet."

The faint light emanating from my skin and the blue glow coming from a luminescent plant across the room filled the space with just enough illumination that I was able to see the women clearly as they came into the room. I crossed to one of the lamps sitting on a low table that was similar to the types of lights that I had down in the mirrored realm and touched its base, hoping that it would turn on, which it did. The new light in the room seemed to put the women slightly more at ease and they all came further into the room.

They didn't want to say it, and they tried very much to be as subtle as they could, but they were all scrutinizing me closely as they approached. Though they were happy to welcome me into the compound and do whatever they could to help me assimilate, they were also somewhat wary of me, an emotion that each carried in a slightly different way.

I could feel that Zuri focused heavily on the way that I looked, identifying the differences between us and feeling at once uncomfortable and guilty about that feeling. The image of Ero, a man I assumed to be her mate, flickered through her mind and the discomfort eased. Leia, the smallest of the women, was fascinated by my differences, but also carried a sense of defensiveness and distance that came from dark memories of the first time she encountered a species that was not her own, dark memories that she shielded closely within her.

The pregnant woman was the most difficult. She was at the same moment the one who seemed most willing to welcome me and the most nurturing, but also the most hesitant. Carrying the child within her had heightened both her natural sense of curiosity and desire to learn about the world around her, but also of fear and suspicion. I could sense that as much as she wanted to think of me as just another woman who had found her way into the Denynso compound, she was also nervous about encountering another species that she didn't understand and that she had had no time to learn to trust.

This was perhaps the most difficult part of being around other creatures again. When I was alone I had no one's emotions to contend with but my own. I could feel and experience only what was impacting me at that moment and work through them in the way that was right for me. When I was with others, I could feel and experience what they did, forcing me to acknowledge their true impressions of me and of the world around them. While it was possible for me to control it and block myself from reflecting the thoughts and feelings of others, I had never built that skill when I was younger and now it was an incredible challenge for me to not tune in to others when I was struggling with my own emotions. This meant that right when I was at my most vulnerable, my mind betrayed me and allowed even more emotion in, often putting me in painful, difficult moments when I was at my least capable of tolerating them.

"I'm Eden," the pregnant woman said, stepping toward me cautiously, "I don't think that I've introduced myself yet."

"Hello," I said, "I'm Loralia."

"I know. We just wanted to come see you and let you know that we're excited that you decided to stay with us. There aren't enough ladies around here."

The three women laughed and I felt myself smile. Despite their hesitance, it was nice to hear that they were happy that I was there.

"Thank you."

"We know what it's like to leave the home you've always known and suddenly become a part of the Denynso," Eden continued, "and we want you to know that we're here for you and we're looking forward to spending time with you while Bannack is gone."

She gave me a soft hint of a knowing smile, but I couldn't even force one back at her.

"What do you mean while Bannack is gone?" I asked, barely able to push the words through the hard lump forming in my throat.

Eden, Zuri, and Leia looked struck and exchanged glances.

"He didn't tell you?" Leia asked.

"No."

"He is leaving with the warriors."

Chapter Four

Bannack walked into the meeting hall with a sense of relief, but at the same time, a feeling of longing and emptiness that made him wish that he could simply turn off his emotions and face the world completely blank and cold. It was that way that the warriors marched into their battles, emotionless, aggressive, and without feeling or compassion. He wished that he could maintain that throughout the rest of his life as well so that he didn't have to deal with feeling like this anymore.

It made him feel better to know that Eden, Zuri, and Leia had gone to see Loralia and welcome her to the compound, but he knew that them going to see her meant that she would soon know that he was leaving and abandoning his guard and protector responsibilities. He knew that this was going to hurt her, and as much as he was conflicted about how he was feeling about her, he hated the idea that he was causing this creature that had already gone through so much even more pain. He didn't want to be her impression of life above the ground, but he didn't have a choice. He had made a single impulsive decision by walking out across the sky and toward the pearlescent glow that had seemed to call to him, and in that decision he felt like he had given over control of himself.

He no longer felt like he could think clearly or make the types of rational decisions that he once did. Though volatile and unpredictable, Bannack had always been one to understand his own motivations and compulsions, even if none of the other warriors, men, women, or even rulers of the Denynso understood them. He didn't like the feeling that these were things he couldn’t think his way through and that for the first time his heart seemed to be making decisions that his mind didn't understand or condone.

Some of the other warriors were milling around in the meeting hall talking about the upcoming trip. A few of them were still questioning the decision to leave the compound and go on the quest, and others were trying to convince them that it was the right thing for the entirety of the clan. Bannack had no interest in trying to build up their ranks or muster more support for the trip, especially if that meant delaying their departure more than the three days that they already had planned. He simply wanted to get their plans in place, prepare, and leave.

Bannack felt a hard pat on his back and spun around defensively, taking an aggressive step forward even before he saw who was standing behind him. Ty, a gentle giant in every meaning of the phrase, stepped back, a startled look in his deep orange eyes. The shade of his eyes was a recent development, a color that had formed only in the couple of weeks since the massive baker had discovered his mate in the beautiful, brilliant, and very young Samira.

"I'm sorry," Bannack said, shaking slightly to try to release the tension that had built in his body.

He felt like he had been wound up, the pressure inside him building almost unbearably and just waiting for its release. It was similar to the feeling that he got when they were marching toward battle, but deeper and more intense in a way that he couldn’t quite understand and hadn't ever experienced.

"Are you doing OK, Bannack?" Ty asked, "You haven't really seemed like yourself since the funeral."

Bannack wanted to brush off the comment and just try to pass it off as being devastated over Jem's death like the rest of the tribe, but he knew that that wouldn't work. Ty, like the others, had known Bannack their entire lives and it would take much more than a flimsy excuse to get them off of his back if they really wanted to know what was going on with him. He let Ty guide him over to one of the long tables where no one else was sitting and slumped down onto the bench.

"I can't think straight," Bannack admitted, "I feel like my mind is going in a thousand different directions and all I want to do is get on our way so that I don't have to think anymore. Why do we have to wait three days?"

"Because it's going to take that long to get all of the supplies together that we need. Besides, we want a little bit of time to say goodbye to our mates properly. It might be a while before we see them again and we'd like to make sure that we have plenty to think about while we're gone."

The young man gave a laugh, but Bannack couldn't muster the same reaction. He glanced down at his hands, suddenly feeling even more uncomfortable at the mention of the other men's mates.

"What are you thinking about so hard over here, Bannack?"

Pyra and Ero came up and settled onto the benches, Ero beside Bannack and Pyra across the table from him beside Ty. All three of the men were staring at him, and Bannack felt the same desperate need to get away that he had when he was standing at the funeral. He knew that that was not really an option now, however. He looked into the faces of each of the men and thought that perhaps talking to them might be a good thing. It could help him to sort through whatever was running through his mind and gain some clarity so that he knew how to move forward.

"I just can't seem to get a hold of my brain recently."

"Why not? Is something going on?" Ero asked.

"I just have all these thoughts and I've been feeling particularly aggressive and angry lately. Ever since the battle, I just feel like I can't keep control of myself."

Out of the corner of his eye Bannack saw the other men exchange glances.

"Are you feeling like you want to kick the living hell out of just about every guy that gets near you, including us?"

"Well, I did just almost punch Ty in the face because he came up and patted me on the back."

"And are you having any other interesting changes? Physical changes, perhaps?"

Bannack squirmed on the bench. He was rethinking how good of an idea it actually was to get the other men involved in this conversation. Ero glanced down at Bannack's lap and Bannack saw him grin and look back at Ty and Pyra.

"I can definitely confirm that he is."

Pyra gave a short, knowing laugh and shook his head at Bannack.

"So who is she?"

Bannack felt his stomach turn. It was exactly what he had been dreading hearing from any of the men. He shook his head, refusing to make eye contact with any of them.

"Come on, tell us," Ty said.

Ty had always been the kindest and most romantic-minded of the Denynso men, a nurturer rather than a warrior though he had recently embraced his incredible inherited power and joined in the final fight against the Klimnu, and looked far more excited about the situation than Bannack felt.

"It has to be one of the Denynso women," Ero speculated, "There haven't been any other girls who have come around here recently."

There was a pause and then Bannack saw Pyra staring at him.

"Except Loralia."

Bannack shook his head again, but there was no use, they had figured it out and now he had nowhere to hide.

"Oh, shit," Ero said, "It is her. You have a thing for the weird little mirror creature."

Bannack knew that he meant it teasingly, but his anger at that statement nearly overwhelmed him. He stood sharply, slamming his hands down in the middle of the table and glaring down at Ero.

"I do not have a 'thing' for her," he snarled.

"Your reactions to her seem to beg to differ," Ty pointed out.

"Have you slept with her? Your eyes aren't orange."

"No, and they wouldn't be even if I had. There's no way that my intended mate is some freakish creature from underground. I am meant to bond with a Denynso woman, like I’m supposed to. I'm not going to fall for some other species, especially one that I know absolutely nothing about."

As soon as the words came out of his mouth, Bannack saw the other men tense. A stiff moment of silence fell over the table as each of them stood slowly from their benches. He met their gazes in turn, seeing a darkness in each of them that he hadn't anticipated.

"Another species?" Pyra snarled, his hand clenching into a fist beside him, "You mean like humans?"

Chapter Five

I could hear the women still talking around me, but it was as if their voices were lost in some kind of fog that was closing in on me. I was trying desperately to process what they had just told me, but no matter how hard I tried to work through it in my mind, I couldn't force myself to let it sink all the way in.

"Bannack is leaving?"

I repeated my question, hoping that somehow I had mistaken what they had said, but deep down knowing that I had heard them exactly right.

Leia came up beside me and rested a hand on my arm. So small and fragile looking, she had a presence that was strong because it had to be, like a delicate flower that had been forged out of pure steel. It was the fire and chisel that created her as she was.

I felt them guiding me towards the furniture in the middle of the main room of the house, and I allowed them to. I had no reason to distrust these women and in that moment they were my only source of information about Bannack and what was happening around me.

"The warriors have decided to leave the compound and explore the rest of Uoria," Leia explained.

"After the battle with the Klimnu down in the mirrored realm they all realized that none of them, not even the king, knows what the rest of the planet holds, or what types of threats there might be out there. They're unwilling to just sit around and wait to find out if there is another species out there like the Klimnu that might want to destroy the Denynso and take over the compound. It seems that discovering your existence made them even more insistent," Eden said softly.

"Why me?" I asked, looking into each of the women's faces in turn.

"You have lived under the ground that they walked on every single day and they had no idea," Zuri said, "It upsets them that they are known for being the best and most fearsome warriors in all the galaxy, yet they were unable to protect their compound from invasion, and didn't even realize that there was an entire other species living just beneath their feet for as long as they have been around."

"My mate, Pyra," Eden continued, "is especially worried about our child. He or she is the very first child born of this generation of the Denynso, and Pyra doesn't like that he doesn't know what could be out there that might pose a threat to his baby."

"He or she?" I asked.

I had never heard that particular phrase used before, and it struck me as strange that she would use it to refer to her unborn child.

"We don’t know what the baby is," Eden explained, "We have no way of knowing. If I were going through my pregnancy back on Earth there would have been ways for me to know long ago if I am having a son or a daughter. The Denynso don't have those ways, though."

There was only a hint of stress in her voice. With the words she had said I would have expected to feel bitterness, or even anger, coming off of her. Instead, I just felt nervousness and the sweeping love that came over her as she mentioned her mate, just like the love that Zuri had felt when she thought of Ero.

"Do you wish that you were back on Earth rather than here with the Denynso?" I asked.

Eden looked at me and shook her head emphatically.

"Absolutely not. Uoria, this compound, is my home, much more so than Earth ever was even though that's where I was born and raised. I didn't know it until I came to this planet as a scientist sent to do a project for work and met Pyra, but this is where I was always meant to be."

I envied the confidence and absolute security that radiated off of her. She had total conviction in what she said, and her heart fully believed every word of it. This really was where she belonged and she couldn't imagine leaving.

"There are other ways than the Earth ways to tell what child you are carrying, you know."

Eden tilted her head quizzically at me and rubbed her belly tenderly.

"The midwives told me that they don't have any kind of technology that can show the baby like they do on Earth, that they take care of it through their own forms of medicine. None of them have ever been able to tell what a woman was having until it was born."

"Ah, but that's the Denynso," I said, smiling for the first time since Bannack had left, "and I'm not a Denynso. My kind has always been able to tell. I could find out for you now if you'd like to know."

Eden nodded and I could feel the hesitance she had felt toward me disappearing. She was learning to trust me, and as she did, the other women did as well. It was a nice feeling, something soothing and comforting in a time when I needed those feelings more than I had in my entire life.

I gestured for Eden to lie down on the couch and I sat beside her, perching just on the edge so that I was close enough to rest my hands on the sides of her swollen belly. It took me a moment to orient myself to the positioning of the baby. Once I did, I reached up to my neck to take my compact, but realized that it wasn't there. I looked around frantically, terrified that I had lost it somewhere between climbing up from out of the ground and removing my dress for Bannack.

Leia dipped down and scooped something up off of the floor.

"Is this what you're looking for?" she asked.

Relief washed over me and I nodded. Before she handed it to me, she opened the sides of the silver compact, revealing the two mirrors within it.

"What is that?" Zuri asked, walking over to look at the compact more closely.

"Please don't touch it," I said sharply when Zuri lifted her fingers to touch the mirrors, "I was born with that compact and I will die with it. If it's broken, there is no way to replace it and I will no longer have the abilities that it gives me."

I hadn't meant to sound angry, but it terrified me to think of my compact getting broken. It was the one remaining link that I had to my family and to my kind. Without it, I would lose everything within me that made me me. I didn't know how to function without it.

"I'm sorry," Leia said, leaning forward to hand me the compact.

"It's alright," I replied, hoping to calm the fear that had started to build in her, "Do you remember when the other woman, Elianna, stepped out onto the floor and it turned back into the sky? I explained that it was a reflection and that she had to believe in what the reflection was showing her in order for it to be real?"

"Yes."

"This," I held up the compact so that she could see it clearly, "is how I made that reflection. This compact enables me to do many things, and one of them will be to tell Eden what type of little one she should be expecting very soon."

The mention of the baby broke the tension in the room and the women all smiled. I opened the compact and placed it with both mirrors flat against Eden's belly close to where I knew the baby's head was positioned. I flattened my palm against the mirror and concentrated on what the mirror was reflecting to me. It was far more difficult to reflect a baby, especially one that was unborn, because they don't know yet how to understand what they are feeling and associate it with concrete thoughts. Instead the compact reflected the essence of the child back to me. This was the inarguable elements of that baby that were stitched into him from the moment of his conception and that would stay with him throughout his entire life. These were the very core of a person, the basic foundation on which all of that person's thoughts, feelings, and perceptions would build.

Having gleaned all I needed to from the reflections of the compact, I closed it, and carefully looped the repaired chain back around my neck. I smiled at Eden.

"You will have a son," I told her, "A boy with the power and spirit of his father, and the strength and courage of his mother. He will have within him the capacity to do amazing things."

Eden had tears sparkling in her eyes and I knew that my description had surprised her. She didn't think of herself as nearly as strong and courageous as she truly was, but I knew that through this baby that she was carrying, one that would be entering the world very soon, that she would learn to see herself in the way that she was made and to see herself in him.

Chapter Six

Bannack could see the fury in the other men's eyes and he immediately regretted what he had said to them. Not wanting the situation to turn into a conflict within the entire clan, he stepped away from the table and left the meeting hall. Either Pyra, Ero, and Ty would follow him and they would hash through the situation on their own outside, or they wouldn't follow and he could escape into the darkness of the night and deal with his feelings alone like he had been for the last couple of days. He honestly wasn't sure which one of them he would prefer to happen.

As soon as he stepped outside, he realized that the other men had, in fact, followed him and they were seething with so much anger it was almost as though he could feel the waves of energy rolling off of them. He didn't pause on the stairs leading up to the meeting hall but continued down into the center of the compound, bringing him closer to his house and further from the rest of the tribe.

"What did you mean by that?" Ero asked.

The youngest and smallest of the warriors, Ero had always been teased and bullied for his size. This had made him bitter and angry over the years, creating in him an unpredictable violence that often led him to major conflicts with the other warriors and even non-warrior members of the tribe. When he met Zuri and she became his mate, much of this anger and instability disappeared, replaced by a sense of confidence and control. That new control, however, seemed to be gone now as the temper returned and his eyes flashed aggressively at Bannack.

"I didn't mean anything by it," Bannack said, trying to brush off the comment that he made even though he knew it was completely out of line.

"You obviously meant something by it," Pyra said, stepping closer to Bannack, "You said that there was no way that you were supposed to mate with a species other than the Denynso. Do you think that there is something wrong with other species?"

"It's not that, Pyra," Bannack struggled to find the right words to express what he had been feeling, but they seemed to die and disappear before they could get from his mind to his mouth.

"Well, it seems to be exactly that," Ty said, showing uncharacteristic anger on his face, "It seems like you're saying that the only acceptable mates for us are Denynso women, and that you are too good to have a mate that isn't one of them."

"Let me remind you that each one of us, as well as Gyyx and Ciyrs, found mates that are most certainly not Denynso women. We fell in love with humans, a species that none of us knew anything about any more than you know anything about Loralia's kind."

"You knew something about them," Bannack snapped back, "We have encountered humans before; even had them come and stay with us for a few months at a time. You might not have known a lot about humans before the women came, but you knew something. You had spent time talking with humans and you had heard about them from Creia. They weren't a complete unknown."

"Why does that matter?"

"With Loralia, I know nothing. Absolutely nothing. We didn't even know that there was a species that existed below ground, much less what they are like. So how am I supposed to be OK with the fact that apparently I am falling for her when I don't even know who or what she is? Mating with a Denynso woman would mean that I understood her. I would know what she is, where she came from, and how we were going to live our lives together. We would have a shared history and the same perspectives. It would be easier and more realistic to bond with her and stay bonded with her because we would be able to know each other more quickly and more easily."

"So you think that because our mates are human women and not Denynso women that our bonds are not as close as the men who have Denynso mates? Or that somehow our relationships are not as good, or as 'realistic'?"

"Be honest, Pyra," Bannack said, staring directly into Pyra's raging orange eyes, "Don't you feel better knowing that Eden is technically a Denynso? Didn't it make you happy that Ciyrs somehow changed her from a human to one of us?"

"I was happy that he saved her life and that I wasn't going to have to live without her. I didn't care what she was. All I cared about was that he got the Klimnu toxins out of her and kept her alive. If that meant turning her into a Denynso woman, that was what it would take; but I wouldn't have loved her any less if she had woken up still completely human."

"After everything that's happened in the last few months with the Klimnu and Jem, and now with the idea of going out into the other areas of the planet to find out what else is out there, I just don't think I'm ready to even think about having a mate, much less having one that I will have to learn everything about."

"Do you really think that any of us was really ready when we found our mates? Or that we didn't have to learn everything about them, too?"

"If you haven't noticed, those five women might all be humans, but they are in no way exactly alike. Each one of them is so different it barely even matters that they are the same species," Ty said, "I know that being with Samira doesn't mean that I understand Eden like Pyra does, and that Ero wouldn't be able to trade Zuri for Leia and just expect that Gyyx would be able to pick right up with her without any problem. That's part of finding your mate. You have to learn her and she has to learn you. Remember, you're just as much a different species to Loralia and she is to you."

That statement struck Bannack harder than he would have anticipated it would have. He had been so wrapped up in how conflicted he felt about her that he never stopped to think about how Loralia perceived him. She hadn't shown a single moment of hesitance when it came to him, and had given herself over to her feelings for him immediately, never once worrying that he wasn't one of her kind, or even that he was a part of a species that had taken over the land where her kind used to live, something that the Denynso would have responded to with violence and anger. She had soothed him and offered herself to him in a way that was so trusting it now made him feel sick at the way that he had treated her.

"What am I going to do?" Bannack asked, looking at the men around him.

The anger in their eyes faded and he could see compassion build in their expressions. Each of them had been through their own personal struggle when they were finding their mates, and they knew how difficult it was to overcome those feelings. Ero had even had to go so far as to travel from Uoria to Earth, becoming the first of his kind to ever travel through space, in order to find Zuri and apologize to her after offending and hurting her so deeply that she had left the planet only a day after arriving. They understood what it was like to be unsure of the intense, all-consuming feelings that came with finding their mates, and now he needed them to tell him how to get through it.

"What in the hell is wrong with you?"

A shriek from across the center of the compound pulled Bannack's attention away from the other men and he saw Eden stalking toward him with a ferocious look in her eyes. Somehow her belly made her look even more intimidating, like a mother animal ready to fight something that was threatening her nest. Bannack took a step back, but Pyra stepped up behind him, forcing him to stay in place and confront the fiery redheaded woman.

"What?" Bannack asked.

"You didn't tell Loralia that you were leaving?"

"Um."

"You just left her? You brought her to her house, she brought you inside, and then you just ran away?"

"Is that all she told you?"

It was bad enough that they knew that he had run out on Loralia. Bannack didn't want to think that she had shared with them everything that had happened leading up to him gathering his clothes and running harder and faster than he could ever remember running in his life.

"Oh, no," Eden said, shaking her head with a spiteful half-smile on her face, "but I don't think that my baby is old enough to hear that story more than once in the same evening."

"I thought that you said you didn't bond with her," Pyra accused from behind him.

"I didn't," Bannack insisted.

"Not completely," Eden said, and then mercifully stopped.

"I know what I did was awful," Bannack said, taking a step toward Eden as the other two women ran up to them, "and I want to make it up to her. I'm dealing with my own issues, but I'm working through them and I don't want to hurt her any more than I already have. I want to tell her how sorry I am before we leave."

"Well that's really sweet, Bannack, but it's not going to be quite that easy."

"Why?"

"She left," Zuri said.

Bannack felt like a rock hit his stomach.

"What do you mean she left?"

"After she told us what you did, she decided that she didn't want to be here anymore. She said there's nothing for her up here and that she wanted to go back home where she didn't have anyone to hurt her."

"Damn it."

"What are you going to do?" Ty asked as Bannack walked around the human women in the direction of the forest.

"I have to go find her."

Chapter Seven

I had only been away from my home for a matter of hours, but it somehow seemed like I had been gone for months. Everything seemed cold and empty, like the cavern itself had forgotten what it was like to have the touch and presence of a living creature inside of it. Even though I had lived in that cavern since birth, I entered into it with a sense of trepidation hovering just in the back of my mind. Nervousness pricked at me as I slid down through the hole in forest floor just above the mirrored realm and made my way down the large tree toward the reflected branches that made roots across the sky that had become the floor.

Something had changed within me and suddenly I didn't know where I fit anymore. The walls and crevices that had always welcomed me and had never inspired even a moment of fear now seemed strange and I wondered if I was going to be able to continue on with my solitary life in the way that I had for so many years. It was amazing how much something as simple as stepping above the ground and experiencing the presence, companionship, compassion, and betrayal of other creatures could change everything that I knew about myself, the world, and my perceptions of existence within it.

I slid down the vines on the tree, letting them carry me until my feet hit the solid wood of the tree branches. I looked down at the reflected sky, the black expanse streaked with the murky, pinkish grey clouds that broke up the sky and muted the stars both above and below me. For the first time I found it as strange as the Klimnu, the Denynso, and the humans had found it. I had always known that our world was a mirror of the one above it, and that what we saw was not what they did, but it wasn't until I had actually stepped onto the ground and saw, for the first time in my entire existence, the sky stretch over my head rather than at my feet that I felt the odd tug within me that said I was questioning something.

Just as I had told Elianna when she nearly fell into the sky through the stone floor I had created for them by reflecting the wall behind them into the expanse in front of them, the entire existence of my kind was based on belief and trust. We had to believe from the very first moments that we drew breath that what we saw was what it was, that it would behave the way that it was meant to, and to never question it. Questioning, wondering, even for a moment, could mean death. In not questioning, however, we never encountered the possibility that what we thought we were reflecting, how we were perceiving a situation, could possibly be wrong.

I was wondering about that now as I stood at the very edge of the reflected sky and pondered what it was that I was seeing. If that was the reflection of the sky, did that mean it was only the reflection of the sky as I perceived it? What if I didn't believe that it was the sky, that I believed it was glass, would that make a difference in how it behaved? Could it be that what I was seeing was not actually what was on the floor of the caverns, but what was being reflected by the caverns, meaning that there was something else actually there?

I knelt down by the edge of the sky and experimented by dipping my hand down into it. Like it always had, my hand slipped beneath the edge of the tree and into the cold space. I withdrew it and reached for one of the clouds. Holding tightly to the vine, I leaned slightly forward so that I could scoop my hand through the pink and grey streak that was like a faint wash of paint across the blackness. When I pulled my palm back, I watched as the pink and grey melted into cold water against my skin. It was just as I would expect it to be.

I sat back against the tree and closed my eyes. I remembered what I had thought I felt when I was standing in front of Bannack. In him I had seen the same desire and need for me that I had felt for him. I had believed that that desire was as intense and irresistible for him as the feeling that I had when I looked at him. I could only believe that because I had no other option but to believe it. Now, though, I realized that I did have another option. I could question what I believed about Bannack, and if I could question that, I could question what I believed about everything, including that the sky was all that existed on the floor of the cavern. Holding onto that feeling about Bannack, the realization that what I had seen in him wasn't really what was inside him, but what I wanted to see, I opened my eyes again and looked at the floor of the cavern.

This time I didn't see the sky. When I looked at it in those dark, silent moments I saw a pane of glass. No longer were the stars struggling to glimmer through the clouds. Instead, I saw only darkness, as if I was looking through it into the abyss deeper in the planet. I closed my eyes again, took a breath, and when I opened them I saw an expanse of thick, white ice.

I reached out over the ice and felt the cold rising up off of it, tingling against the skin of my palm. Releasing the vine that had been tethering me to the tree, I stood and stepped out onto the ice. The cold was almost painful against the bare bottoms of my feet, but I reveled in it, enjoying the sharp, undeniable feeling that told me I had created what I wanted to from my own perceptions. What I had told Elianna was absolutely true. She hadn't believed that the floor would be solid, so it turned back into what she had been told it was, and what she believed it to be, the sky. When I believed that sky to no longer be the sky, but glass, it had become glass. And now it was ice.

I didn't need my mirrored compact anymore to create what I desired. I only had to believe in my ability to change my perceptions and the perceptions of those around me, and I could create whatever I desired.

I walked across the ice until I reached the expanse of dark ground on the other side and continued forward, not glancing back over my shoulder to find out what happened to the ice when I looked away. The corners of the cavern still looked strange, but I forced myself not to look at them. I kept my eyes focused ahead and climbed my way down into the second chamber so that I could go back into my house.

The solar panels hadn't had the chance to power the lamps since I had left, so I had to rely on the soft glow from my skin to illuminate the room around me. I walked into my bedroom and removed my dress, not bothering to dress again as I made my way out of my house and toward the hot spring toward the back of the chamber that I had adopted as my bath. I sank down into the water, allowing it to soothe my muscles and ease the tension that had built within me.

I dipped my head back into the water to wash my hair and then braided it into a long plait down my back, and then twisting it up so that I could knot it around itself. The air of the cavern was cool around me as I climbed up out of the hot water and made my way back to my house, allowing my skin to dry as I walked. I felt like I was moving through a still, untouchable image, as if nothing was moving with me or responding to my presence. It was as if the emptiness inside me had extended out and taken the energy and light from everywhere I ventured.

Once I was back inside my house I reached into the bureau against my bedroom wall and pulled out a nightgown. I was just dropping it down over my head, intending to crawl into my bed and allow the world to disappear around me, when I heard a voice echoing through the cavern.

Chapter Eight

"Loralia!"

Bannack wrapped his arm through the vines hanging from the trees and called out to Loralia again. His eyes were focused on the massive expanse of ice that stretched across the cavern where the reflection of the sky had been when he was last in the underground world. He screamed for her again, not sure if he should even attempt to step on the ice, and remembering what she had said about believing in the reflection in order for it to be real. Considering he had no idea what it could possibly be reflecting in order to appear as a block of ice, he couldn't bring himself to believe in its ability to withstand his weight.

Finally Loralia appeared on the other side of the expanse much as she had the first time he saw her. Her body gave off the same soft glow, but this time it wasn't being entranced by the glow that made him want desperately to cross the cavern and be near her. This time it was knowing that she was inside that glow, emanating it from her smooth, soft skin and her hypnotic eyes that made him need to get over to her. He could feel his body responding with almost painful intensity and his heart pounded just knowing that she was close again.

"Bannack?"

Her voice sounded confused and she didn't step any closer to him.

"Loralia," he said again, "I need to talk to you."

"I don't have anything to say to you," she said.

The words made him feel like his heart had constricted and he couldn't force any breath into his lungs.

"Please," he said, taking a step down the trunk of the tree and toward the edge of the ice, "I just want to tell you that I'm sorry. If after that you want me to leave and not ever come back down here, I will. It will be the hardest thing I ever do in my life, but I'll do it if that's what you want, as long as you just let me talk to you for a few minutes now."

Loralia looked down at the ice and saw it breaking. Long, fine cracks appeared across the surface, forming patterns like lace until the pieces started to melt away, disappearing into the blackness of what was once again the reflected sky. She had created the ice to keep him away, but the sound of his voice and the desperation in his words told him that she hadn't been wrong about what she had reflected from him. It was questioning it that had brought her to the truth, however, just like questioning the sky had brought her to the ice that now melted into the stars. She wondered if outside it was raining.

"Please, Loralia," Bannack said again, "Let me come over to you."

There was a moment of stillness between them and Bannack watched as her eyes explored the sky that now stretched across the cavern, and then lift to him. He was worried that she was just going to tell him to leave and that he would never see her again, or maybe that she would make a floor for him to walk across and then make it fall away right when he was in the middle of the room so that he disappeared to wherever Jem had gone when he fell during the battle. To be honest, he really wouldn't have blamed Loralia if she decided to do either. He realized now how horribly he had treated her, and if she refused to have anything to do with him after it, it would be completely justified.

Loralia's slim, graceful hand lifted slowly to her neck and rested on her compact for a few seconds before she loosened the chain and took the small silver compact in her hand. She opened it and focused it on the wall behind him just as she had the first time that he saw her. The sky disappeared, replaced by the dark grey of the stone.

"Is it safe?" he asked.

"Is it?"

Bannack knew exactly why she was asking. She had already done what she could do to get him across to her, just as she had done everything she could to reach out to him and connect them. Now it was up to him. He had to trust in the solidity of the floor beneath his feet just as he had to trust in himself and in her. If he didn't, there would be no way for them ever to be together.

Taking a deep breath and keeping his eyes focused on Loralia's, Bannack stepped forward. The ground was solid beneath his feet and he continued ahead. He walked in silence, crossing to her with deliberate slowness to prove his absolute trust and confidence in the floor and in her. When he was within a few steps of the edge of the expanse, he stopped and reached his hands out to her. This would be the moment, the moment when he would lose his trust and fall victim to the struggle within him again, the moment when he would let the conflict inside him rise again and send him tumbling down into the sky.

Instead, the ground stayed secure. He didn't waiver in his desire to have her in his arms and as she stepped forward to join him on the solid stone that had replaced the sky. He knew that as long as she was there with him, the stone would stay exactly where it was. The sky was transient, always changing and shifting, never staying the same as if it didn't know exactly what it wanted to be. The stone, though, was absolute and definite. It was strong and solid, and never changed.

This is what he felt now as Loralia walked toward him, reaching out to rest her cool, soft fingers against his palms so that he could hold them and draw her forward into his arms. What had once been transient like the sky was now like the stone, and he would never again allow himself to deny her, even for a moment.

"I'm sorry," he whispered into her hair as he cradled her against his chest.

Loralia pressed herself closer against him and he heard a gentle sigh slip from her lips.

"You don't have to wonder who you are, Bannack," she said.

The words struck him and he leaned back to look at her.

"What do you mean?"

"You worry that you don't fit what you are supposed to be; that you don't live up to what people expect of you. You wonder if you are really who everyone has always told you that you are, or that you should be."

It was something that Bannack had never expressed to anyone, a feeling that he had carried within him his entire life and never given voice to, even to his closest family and friends. He understood now that it was not her that had caused all of his struggle, but himself. It wasn't that he was upset about her being another species that he didn't know anything about, but that he didn't know himself well enough to trust that he could be the mate that she deserved.

"You are a warrior, just as you were born to be. You are strong, you are brave, and you are powerful."

As she spoke, Loralia's hands drifted from Bannack's shoulders down his chest. He felt her fingers exploring his body through the fabric of his clothing as if memorizing the curves and planes so that she could remember them even when they were apart. He wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her against him so that she could feel more of his body and how much he needed her. Suddenly she drew in a breath and looked down.

"What is it?" he asked softly.

"Did I do something wrong? Did I try to go too fast?"

Her voice sounded thin, almost like she was afraid to ask him the questions. He took her hands in his, pulling them off of his chest and holding them between them, giving them a slight shake so that she would look at him. He hated that she thought that it was her fault that he had run away from her, and he was going to do everything that he could to show her that it wasn't true.

Chapter Nine

The look in Bannack's eyes nearly took my breath away as he stared deeply at me. His eyes were flickering from their usual greyish blue shade to orange and back, and I could feel intense, searing heat pulsating from his body. It was so hot I felt like it should have burned me. Instead, it tingled across my skin and made my breath deepen.

"You did nothing wrong," Bannack said.

His voice was low and rumbling, deeper than it had been any other time he had spoken to me.

"Are you sure?"

Bannack glanced down at my lips and then back into my eyes. Without saying anything, he leaned forward and caught my mouth with his. The kiss was even deeper, more intense than our first, like it was going beyond his lips against mine to connect us on another level. As his mouth moved against mine, he pulled me closer and I could feel the hardness of his body pressing against my belly. My breath caught in my throat and I arched my back to push more firmly against it. Bannack let out a soft groan and I started guiding him off of the stone and toward the second chamber of the cavern. I wanted to bring him home with me.

We walked along in silence and I could feel his passion growing with each step. I led him past the house that I occasionally visited, where I had changed my clothes after bathing, and through the rest of the chamber toward the large, protective chamber in the back of the cavern. This was truly my home, the place where I truly felt the most comfortable and the most at ease, and this was where I wanted to be with him.

"Is this your home?" he asked as we stepped into the chamber.

"Yes," I told him, "I have a house, but this is where I consider myself at home. This is where I feel safe."

Bannack gave my wrist a gentle tug so that I curled back into his arms. He pressed a kiss to the top of my head and then another to my cheekbone.

"I will keep you safe," he whispered, "I will always keep you safe."

His lips touched the side of my neck and I felt a shiver travel through my body and settle between my thighs. I ached for his touch again and could feel the warmth building as my body prepared for him. The tip of his tongue grazed across my skin. The feeling made my body tremble and I grabbed onto his upper arms, holding them to give myself stability as his mouth continued to explore along the side of my neck and down into the curve between my neck and shoulder.

I felt Bannack's hands smooth down the sides of my hips and onto my outer thighs, gathering the sides of my nightgown with his fingers so that he could slip his hands beneath the hem. He moaned as he realized that I wasn't wearing anything under the nightgown and I felt him fill his hands with my flesh, kneading gently as he met my mouth again with another intense kiss.

His mouth moved across mine with depth and need, but not intensity. He moved slowly, carefully tasting me as his hands massaged into my muscles and pulled me ever closer so that our hips met and the irresistible pressure of his erection against my belly made me whimper into his mouth. His hands swept up, tossing my nightgown aside. I had been wearing nothing else, and again I was completely bare in front of him. I reached up behind my neck and loosened the chain that held the compact I had reattached to its hook. Gently placing the compact down on top of my nightgown, I turned back to him.

"You are the most beautiful thing I have ever seen," he whispered.

"Let me see you," I whispered back, reaching forward to release the laces that tied up the front of his pants.

Bannack stepped back and took off his shirt, letting it fall to the floor beside my nightgown. He looked at me and I stepped closer to him, bringing my hands back to the laces on his pants. They loosened easily beneath my fingers and I eased his pants down his hips so that they fell to the floor. Bannack stepped out of them and took off his boots. Finally he was as bare as I was. There was nothing between us anymore and I indulged myself by touching the front of my body to his. The heat of his skin drew me in and I ran my hand down his chest and along the chiseled, rippling muscles along his side.

"You are beautiful," I said quietly, admiring every bit of him that my fingers touched.

"I know that I don't deserve to be with you," he said, nuzzling his face in my hair, "but if you will let me, I will do everything I can to earn you. Starting with worshiping every inch of you."

With that, he swept me into his arms so that my hips nestled against his, my core cradling his erection and my breasts crushed against his chest. I wrapped my arms around his neck and my legs around his waist. He was so tall that holding me like that had me several feet off of the ground, but I wasn't afraid. I knew that I was never safer than when I was in his arms.

"How did your kind choose a life mate?" he asked, his labored breath making his voice low and sultry.

He held me with such ease, seeming to need to put forth no effort to keep me nestled against him. His mouth dropped to the side of my neck again and I closed my eyes briefly to savor the feeling.

"They were tied together," I finally managed to say.

"Tied?" he asked, lifting his mouth just long enough to speak before kissing along my collarbone.

I nodded, tilting my head back to encourage his mouth to my neck again.

"The women wove braids out of pieces of cloth and a treasured friend would tie their wrists together and say a blessing over them."

"Will you do that with me?" he asked, his lips tracing along the front of my neck until they reached the soft dip between my collarbones.

"Yes," I said, leaning back a little further to grant him more access.

"Until then, can I show you how the Denynso bond?"

"Yes."

Bannack tightened his grip on me and started to walk forward. By the direction he was moving I knew he was headed toward the long, low bench that ran along the far wall. A few moments later he lowered himself to his knees and rested me back against the plush cushions, carefully drawing my legs from around his waist so that he could sit back on his feet. He gently parted my thighs, draping one leg over the side of the bench and the other over his shoulder so that I was totally open and vulnerable to him.

"This time," he said, running his hand down my thigh toward the wet heat he had been creating with every touch and every kiss, "when I touch you, I want to be looking at you."

Just those words made me feel like I was edging beyond my control and I pushed my hips closer to him, opening further to surrender myself completely to him. Bannack brought his hand the rest of the way down and drew the pads of his fingers through my core, sending shivers through my body. He pressed deeper, parting my folds so he could explore me as he gazed into my face.

I watched as Bannack dipped his fingers into his mouth, drawing them across his tongue before reaching down again and slipping them into me. I gasped at the feeling, so overwhelmed that I at once tried to pull away from it and push deeper into it. He moved patiently, easing his fingers deeper into my tight, untouched body and moving them slowly so that he massaged my upper wall. He groaned in response to my body arching up toward him and the whimpers pouring from my chest. I gripped his arm, digging my fingers deeply into him as he continued his deliciously torturous exploration.

Almost unbearable pressure was building throughout my belly, thighs, and hips and I felt the same desperate need for him that I had in the house in the Denynso compound before he left. Just before he allowed the tension to release, however, he carefully withdrew his fingers. I gasped at the emptiness and searched his face, worried for a moment that he was going to leave again. He smiled at me and drew his fingers through his mouth again, removing my slick fluids from his skin.

"Not yet," he whispered, "Be patient."

I wasn't feeling particularly patient, but I nodded, willing to give all of my trust and control over to him and allow him to guide me. I wanted to please him in whatever way he wanted, and whatever way that I could. He eased my leg down off of his shoulder at the same time that he took my hand and gently led me up into a sitting position. I moved by instinct when he stood, lowering myself to my knees in front of him. Bannack stroked my face tenderly before tucking his hand around behind my head and guiding me forward so that I opened my mouth and welcomed his erection in against my tongue.

His long, hard shaft felt incredible in my mouth, and the deep sounds rolling over me like thunder pushed me even further. I let my mouth glide along him, savoring the feeling of every ridge and vein, and the warm, salty taste of his skin. I felt like I could have continued on like that for the rest of the night, but suddenly Bannack's hand tightened on my head and he gently pulled me back away from him. I looked up at him and he eased me to my feet.

Bannack sat on the bench behind him and drew me forward until I straddled his hips much as I had in the house, but this time I was facing him rather than looking away. Wrapping one arm around my hips, he lowered me down toward his lap. I felt the tip of his erection touch my opening and drew in a breath. He paused only for a moment, then led me the rest of the way down so that I settled against him, enveloping his shaft deep within me. My head dropped back and my mouth opened to cry out, but there was no sound. The feeling of him filling me so completely was so intense I could only gasp for breath.

We sat still for several seconds as my body adjusted to holding him.

"Relax for me," he whispered.

I lifted my head so that I could look into his eyes again. Letting his beautiful face soothe me, I relaxed my muscles and let him sink even deeper into me. His hands came to my hips and he began to guide them, rolling them in slow circles. Bannack sat up straighter so that our bodies touched and rested his hand on my lower back. Bracing himself against the bench with his other hand, he rocked my hips into a faster rhythm. As our bodies moved and slipped across each other our sounds blended and swirled, filling the space around us until I could perceive nothing but what we were creating together.

His body nurtured me back into the sense of dizzying pressure, but this time the desperation wasn't there. I had him within me and I couldn't imagine there was anything more incredible. Suddenly, though, I realized Bannack began to grunt deeply and thrust intensely up into me, coaxing me closer to the edge of my control, and then pushing me over so that I screamed his name and contracted around him at the same moment that he cried out, throbbing and pulsing as hot streams filled me.

I held Bannack as tightly as I could, letting my tremors embrace him as he continued to pulse within my body. I sobbed for breath and clung to him, burying my fingers in his hair and rocking my hips subtly as I rode out the last waves of my climax. His mouth slowly trailed down onto my breast and suckled at one nipple, then the other, before lifting up to cover mine.

We kissed languidly as our bodies cooled and then he parted our lips to nuzzle his nose against mine.

"Come home with me."

Chapter Ten

Bannack kept his eyes closed as he asked the question, part of him worried that Loralia wouldn’t be as willing to go back above ground, and that he might have to try to get used to living down in her world. When she didn't answer, he opened his eyes to look at her. He saw her eyes widen and he smiled.

"They change color after we've found our mate," he explained, knowing that the orange of his eyes had surprised her.

As much as it had worried him that he was going to have to learn about an entirely new species in order to be with her, he realized that it felt completely natural to explain the Denynso to her and let her explain her kind to him. He enjoyed discovering the new things about her and looked forward to each new detail that he would uncover in their lives together. She still hadn't answered his question and he looked directly into her eyes, trying to make the connection that the Denynso were able to make with their mates. He didn't hear anything.

Tilting his head quizzically at her, he tried harder to make the connection.

"What?" she asked.

"What are you thinking right now?"

"What do you mean?"

"What are you thinking right now?" he repeated.

"That that was incredible," she admitted, "and wondering how long it will be until we can do it again."

He laughed softly.

"Soon," he told her.

"Why did you want to know what I was thinking?"

"When my kind find our mates and bond, our minds connect. We're able to reach each other's thoughts and communicate just by thinking. I can't hear your thoughts."

"So I'm not your mate?"

Loralia sounded devastated and confused, and Bannack felt her start to pull away from him. He held her tighter and pulled her against him again.

"No, no. You are. If you weren't, my eyes wouldn't have changed. We just can't read each other's thoughts."

"Could it be because I'm not a Denynso?"

"The human women are able to communicate with their mates."

Bannack worried that she was going to be upset, but she smiled at him.

"I guess you are just going to have to settle for trusting and loving me."

"I do," he replied.

"Which one?"

The smile had faded from her lips and she was looking at him in a way that felt like she was looking into his soul.

"Both. I trust you," he leaned forward and touched a kiss to the middle of her chest, "and I love you."

"I love you, too."

Their mouths met again and he drew her as close to his body as he could. He was still buried deep within her and he felt himself hardening again. Loralia began to roll her hips slowly, and he carefully turned her, resting her on her back and coming down on top of her.

Two days later Bannack stood in the row of warriors in the meeting hall, his eyes fixed on Creia even though his thoughts were focused on the table behind him. He knew Loralia was sitting there among the human women, gazing at his back. Even though he still couldn't listen to her thoughts or communicate with her with his mind, he could feel her. He could sense her presence and it was at once empowering and soothing. With her near him he was calm and in control, but felt stronger and more powerful than he ever had.

"Many times we have come to this room to honor the courage and bravery of our warriors," Creia said from his platform, "but tonight it is for a different reason. Our men have walked into battle without fear and have come back victorious. They have always protected our home and our kind, and have offered up their lives to ensure we can live comfortably. Tonight they prepare for a challenge that none have faced. Tomorrow these warriors will leave the compound and be the first Denynso to venture out onto Uoria. We don't know what adversities they may encounter or what threats they will find. Tonight we feast for tomorrow we watch them walk toward something even more frightening than the risk of death: the unknown. I know that each of them is prepared and that they will show the same strength, determination, and mastery that they have in everything else that they have done."

Bannack's spine straightened even further at his king's words. He dreaded leaving Loralia after having just found her, but now more than ever he understood the need for their journey. He had promised her that he would keep her safe, and he intended to do everything in his power to ensure that he kept that promise.

(To be continued in Part III…)

Book 3 – The Alien’s Surprise

Chapter One

"I think that's going to be enough, Babe," Ty said, taking another loaf of bread from Samira's hand and shoving it down into the bag sitting on the counter, "There's going to be food on the trail."

"Can you be absolutely sure of that?" Samira asked, her eyes sparkling with the tears that she was fighting to hold back, "You have no idea what's out there. Can you be absolutely positive that when you walk out of this compound that you are actually going to be able to find enough food to keep you going while you are away?"

Ty looked at his mate rushing around his bakery, gathering the loaves of bread she had baked for him, and felt his heart constrict. The truth was that he really didn't have any idea what it was going to be like when he and the Denynso warriors left the compound to go explore Uoria and find out what types of species, plants, and land existed outside of the small area of land that they had always occupied. Their kind had never left the compound and had existed completely within their small area of the planet without really considering what might be going on outside their boundaries. When they fought the wars that made them famous around the galaxy as the most fearsome and aggressive warriors in existence, it was against species that came to their planet and infiltrated their space.

It was one of these battles that had made them realize the desperate need to get outside of their compound and explore. In that battle, the final and brutal clash with their long-time enemies the KIimnu, they discovered that there was an entire realm right beneath their feet, a mirror of the land that existed above it, that had been home to a species that they had never even known was there. The idea that a species of creatures had lived right under their compound as long as they had been there without any of the Denynso, not even the king, even knowing that they were there was terrifying, and they realized that they would never be able to protect themselves or their families properly if they didn't know what was going on on the rest of the planet.

End of Uoria Mates II Preview…

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