Page 77 of Cosmic Soul

“Caleb will do this,” I said.

Dontilvynsan replied, tail touching mine for the barest moment before flicking away, “I will do all I can to keep him safe.”

“I’ll fly the shuttle,” Serlotminden instantly offered.

“No,” Dontilvynsan said. “You, Kalvoxrencol, and Seth will stay here, under my protection. Monqilcolnen will fly the shuttle with Zoltilvoxfyn and his Caleb.” Serlotmiden opened his mouth to complain, but our older brother silenced him. “This is my ship, and I give the orders. Monqilcolnen is in the navy. You are a shuttle racer.”

He scowled. “I can do this.”

“Worry not,” Monqilcolnen said, tugging Serlotminden against his side. “I might not be as good as you, but Zoltilvoxfyn and his mate will be fine.”

Serlotminden wasn’t the only one upset. Kalvoxrencol was snarling under his breath, but Seth had his arms wrapped around him, keeping him calm. No doubt, Pest wanted to go himself.

“Thank you, Caleb,” Dontilvynsan said, looking unerringly at where Caleb stood at my side.

Caleb stuck his straightened hand to his forehead, then shot it out in an oddly stiff move at Dontilvynsan, bouncing on the balls of his feet. “Not a problem, oh Captain my Captain. I’m excited. It’ll be fun. A little bit of adventure. I haven’t had one in a while.”

My mate might be excited, but dread curled in my soul.

Chapter 31

A walk in space.

I skipped from one end of the shuttle to the other. Zoltilvoxfyn tracked my movements from his seat near the wall. I’d tried to sit next to him, but I was too excited. It had been way too long since my sense of adventure had been tickled. I loved the little thrill of what could happen or what I would or would not see. God, what was happening on the cheese-shaped ship? I had to know.

“You’re happy,” Zoltilvoxfyn said.

“Hmm?”

“You like this.”

“It’s the unknown. What’s on the ship? Who is on the ship? What if it’s empty? What if it’s not empty? I can’t wait to find out.”

His shoulders relaxed and his writhing tail settled. “Your tether.”

“What?”

“You must be a seeker soul. Your tether is the unknown. It’s why you wandered the universe, Caleb.”

My head cocked to the side. Possibly. I did love to explore, but something about his words rang false deep within me. I instinctively knew that wasn’t my tether.

Shaking my head, I said, “That’s not it.”

“No?”

“I don’t know how, but I know that’s not right.”

“Well, I still love watching you excited, even though I wish you wouldn’t do this.”

“I’ll be fine,” I said, finally taking a seat next to him. “I promise. I will come back, and I will remain right here beside you. Mostly.”

“Mostly?”

“I have to explore your planet.” I bounced in my seat. “Maybe we can go on another date in the city. I want to see the shops. And the forests. And oh, that canyon we flew over might be interesting, but going back to the beach would be great too. Or the mountains in the distance. I want to see those too. Do you have plants that eat people? Cause that would be fun.”

“As long as you return to me, you can have whatever you desire, Mate.”

I licked my lips. “Anything?”

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