Chapter Six
"I can't believe that I just found you, and now I have to leave you."
Bannack tightened his hands around Loralia's and stared into her still-startling lavender eyes. He had spent only three days with her, and one of them had been spent trying to find her so that he could apologize and convince her to come back with him. Now he was going to be walking away from her, leaving her in a strange place that she didn't know so that he could explore the rest of the planet for an indeterminate amount of time. Though it had been his idea in the first place for the warriors to go outside of the compound and explore Uoria to find out what other types of species existed beyond their boundaries, now that he was only minutes away from leaving, it made his stomach feel sick.
"Everything is going to be fine," Loralia soothed him, stroking the tip of his nose with hers, "You are going to go and discover amazing new things, and I will be here getting used to my new home. The women have been very kind to me and I'm sure that they will continue to do everything that they can to make me feel welcome and to help me assimilate to life up here."
His mate was truly incredible and Bannack couldn't help but stare at her in amazement. This creature, the last of her kind, had not only lived completely on her own without any contact from other species for years after her family and friends died from a mysterious plague that had spared only her for reasons that even she didn't understand, but had also left the only home that she had ever known in order to come above ground and be his mate among a strange species and in a world that she had never experienced. He might be a warrior, but Loralia by far had more courage than he ever would.
"I just feel horrible for even suggesting that we go do this so soon after meeting you."
Loralia shook her head.
"This is something that needs to be done. If it wasn't for the bravery and curiosity of the Denynso, the Klimnu never would have been eliminated, and you never would have found me."
"Well," Bannack said, squirming a little against the bench, "technically it wasn't the bravery and curiosity of the Denynso. It was the bravery and curiosity of the human women. They're the ones that went down into the tunnel after we found it, and they're the ones that went back and figured out that the Klimnu were using the mirrored realm to get to us. We just kind of went along with it."
Loralia laughed and Bannack felt his heart soar. He had struggled to think that he was ever going to find a mate, and then when he found her, he had fought even harder against himself, trying to tell himself that he was not the type of person that could mate with a species that was not his own. Of course, that was just his own fear and questions about himself talking and quickly the other warriors and their human mates showed him how wrong he was. He would never be able to thank them enough for pushing him to listen to what was truly in his heart and not what was going through his mind.
"I love you, Bannack," Loralia said, "and when you leave here, you will carry my love with you. But I also want you to bring this."
She reached into the small pouch that she wore on one hip and withdrew what looked like a slightly larger version of the compact that she wore around her neck and that held the mirrors she used to manipulate the space around her. It hung from a chain that looked like it was made of a long braid of her hair. Bannack took the compact into his palm and stared down at it. It didn't shimmer like hers did, but looked heavy and dark like the deeply scrolled metal hadn't been touched in many years.
"This compact," she said, touching it gently with her fingertips, "was my father's. He was an incredible man, and so are you. My hair connects this compact to mine. If you need me, just open the compact and reflect the braid in the top mirror for a few seconds. Mine will let me know that you're calling for me, and when I open my compact I will be able to see anything reflected in yours, and you will be able to see anything reflected in mine."
This was the most amazing gift Bannack could have imagined. He had been struggling knowing that unlike the other warriors and their mates, he was not able to connect with Loralia through her mind and communicate with her through their thoughts. It had made him feel like they weren't as tightly linked as the others, though he knew that he loved her with the same intensity as the other men loved their women. This compact, something that she had treasured for so long, was not just a reminder of her for when they were apart, but also a tangible way for him to connect with her in a manner that was completely unique to them.
"Good morning, everyone."
The deep sound of King Creia's voice brought the attention of everyone in the hall toward the platform where the king and his queen, Theia, stood. They looked out over the clan gathered in the meeting hall with the fondness and pride of parents overlooking their children. Several of the warriors were, in fact, their children, but even those who were not theirs by blood were adored by the kind and caring king and queen.
"This morning is very special for all of us, Creia continued. Today is the first day of a time of discovery that will change the future for every one of us. Through their selflessness, courage, and determination, our warriors and healer will do what no other Denynso has ever been able to do; learn what exists beyond our compound boundaries and what it means for our clan. The journey may be long and difficult, but I have absolute faith and confidence in each one of them that they will be successful and make us all even more proud of them, and of our kind, than we already are. I want each of them to know that our thoughts are with them and that we will all be eagerly awaiting their return. For now, everyone enjoy breakfast and spend some time together. They depart in one hour."
Creia nodded and stepped back, walking down off of the platform with Theia so that they could go to their nearby table and eat. The meeting hall cooks had placed trays overflowing with food into the centers of the long tables and everyone was starting to eat, but Bannack didn't have much of an appetite. He was too busy regretting everything that he had done and said in the first day that he knew Loralia. Though she had forgiven him without question, he felt like he was never going to be able to let go of those lost moments with her.
"Don't hate yourself, Bannack," Loralia said.
Though she couldn't read his thoughts the way that the other mates could read the thoughts of their Denynso men, Loralia was able to perceive the feelings and emotions of the people around her, making it possible for her to always know what he was going through.
"I lost so much time with you."
"It was only a day, Bannack, and every moment that you suffer with that is another moment that you are taking from us. Stop thinking about what has already happened and can never be redone, and think about what has yet to happen and what could be. I love you. Nothing is going to change that."
"I love you, too," Bannack said, leaning forward to kiss her.
As she gazed back at him he realized that everything she had said she meant with her whole heart. For the first time, he let himself let go of what had happened and gave himself over completely to the powerful, consuming love that he felt for her.