Page 45 of A Monster's Light
Tasha and Clara came to join us. I’d finally met Clara yesterday. I never would’ve pinned her as Krxare’s mate since the Kadrixan leader seemed so strict, and Clara was super chill. But I guess it all worked out since her brother, Chris, co-led Ellaston with Mark.
She was telling us all about the swimming pond she planned on installing at Ellaston when a dark red form flying into thevalley caught my attention. No matter how many times I saw Gnnar in flight, the image always left me in awe. He was so majestic and powerful. And he was all mine!
“There’s your warrior,” Julie said, elbowing me. “I guess that means the shield system has been thoroughly checked and rearmed.”
I got up and said goodbye to my friends, old and new, as he landed. And soon, I was in my warrior’s arms, and he was planting kisses all over my face.
“Miss me?” I asked with a giggle.
“Every moment I was away.” He made a face. “You are much better company than Vostak.”
That had me chuckling. “You better think so, cuz I’m never letting you go. You’re stuck with me forever.”
“You say that like it’s a long time. I love you, Starlight. When it comes to you, forever isn’t nearly enough.”
Warmth and happiness welled up in my chest, filling me up until they threatened to leak from my eyes as tears. “I love you too, big guy.”
I turned my face to the setting sun, ready to embark on the next step of our journey together forever.
Epilogue: Gnnar
A few years later…
“It’s time for bed.” I took the device from my son’s hand.
“Aww. But I’m not tired yet.” His drawn-out yawn as he rubbed his horns told the truth.
“You don’t want to be tired and weak for tomorrow’s training trip, do you?” I asked.
Gnnak sighed dramatically. “Fine. But can you tell me a bedtime story? The one with Shadow Ragnnar.”
By now, Dana was in on the secret that the story technically had no ending. The warrior named Ragnnar traveled infinitely through the stars, having grand adventures on every planet he landed on. When I was young, the warrior never had a name; Ragnnar had always just called him the warrior.
It had been Dana who’d suggested naming the character after my brother. I liked the idea. I wanted to believe that he was out there exploring the stars. Somewhere along the way, Shadow Ragnnar had picked up a mate, and they were now exploring the universe together with their offspring Ragnnar Junior, often shortened to Junior.
“I’ll do it,” I said, picking Gnnak up and bringing him to his bed.
Dana pulled me down and gave me a peck on the cheek before stepping back out to the main area of our family suite here in the stronghold.
Things have changed a lot since those early days when a few of us mated warriors decided to reverse our fertility block and start our families. For one, we’d remodeled the tiny warrior quarters to accommodate growing families.
It had started with Tasha and Rrak and their twin boys, and Clara and Krxare had their little girl. They are expecting again, this time a boy. Dana and I had our hands full with Gnnak.
In Kadrixan culture, being a father was a full-time job. This was especially true with male offspring since they often became hard to manage once they learned to fly. This was why we had to earn the right to reproduce on Kadri, and why we had to hoard a nest of treasures before finding our mates. Family life often meant retiring from full-time work to care for our offspring.
Things were different here on Vokira, though. We couldn’t retire, not with peace being so fragile and no younger generation to pick up the mantle. But I didn’t mind. I’d never been happier in my life.
Gnnak was asleep before we got to the second planet. I carefully snuck out of his room and into the one I shared with Dana.
I found her already in bed, so I stripped off my pants and climbed in with her, pulling her rounded form close to my chest. She felt as perfect there now as she had that first time.
She turned to sniff my chest. “Mmm. Yummy. I can’t wait for tomorrow.”
Tomorrow was the start of the three-day training session all the children did once a month. It gave all the children, human and Kadrixan alike, a chance to learn all the skills required to survive on their own, both out in the wilds and in society. It was basically all the information we Kadrixans had determined was missing in a formal human-style education.
I was shocked to find that some of the humans had no idea what was edible growing all around them. Many could not prepare and cook food that had already been hunted for them, such was their reliance on prepackaged foods. Some females on Kadri did not cook, but that was because they chose not to, not because they’d never been taught. What good were equations if you starved to death surrounded by food?
Every month, when Gnnak went with the others on the extended training, we’d disappear up into our nest and spend it renewing our bond. Dana called it a “long weekend.”
