Page 9 of Zinnia and the Zombie
Her cheeks flushed hot with embarrassment. She’d told him everything—her hopes, her fears, her most private thoughts.
He must have sensed her discomfort because he added, “Your words kept me company in the darkness. They helped me remember who I was.”
“Umm. Who are you, exactly? You know all about me, but I don’t know anything about you.”
“My name is Jaxx – Commander Jaxxlariat t’Semon. I am – was – the commander of a Zathix exploration vessel.”
Before she could respond, the ship shuddered violently, and his attention snapped back to the controls.
“The Ithyian ship undoubtedly has long range scanners. We need to get out of range as quickly as possible.”
His fingers flew across the control panel again, and the engines screamed as he pushed them harder. The golden glow of his skin seemed to dim slightly, and she noticed a subtle tremor in his hands.
“Are you okay?”
“The stasis… takes a toll,” he admitted. “I’ll be fine.”
She wasn’t entirely convinced. The brilliant gold of his skin was definitely dulling, fading to a paler champagne color.
He continued studying the star chart, his expression grim. “There,” he said, pointing to a blue-green sphere. “Veridia Prime. It’s the only habitable planet within range.”
“What’s it like?”
“I don’t know. This region is unfamiliar to me. But it’s our best chance. We don’t have enough fuel or life support for a longer journey.”
She nodded, trusting his judgment. “Then let’s go there.”
He quickly plotted a course although she noticed the tremor in his hands growing more pronounced. The ship lurched forward again, accelerating toward the distant planet.
“How long will it take?” she asked.
“At our current speed, approximately six hours. But—” He was interrupted by another alarm. “Damn. They’re deploying long range scanners.”
“Looking for us?”
“Perhaps,” he said grimly. “But it could simply be a routine check. I’ll try to get us out of range.”
The tremor in his hands was impossible to ignore now. Sweat beaded on his forehead, and his breathing had become labored. When she reached out to touch his arm his skin was cool, not warm as it had been before.
“You are not okay,” she said.
“It’s… normal,” he managed. “Post-stasis weakness. The energy I absorbed from the guard is wearing off.”
The energy he absorbed? Maybe her name for him was more accurate than she’d realized.
“You fed on his…” She couldn’t quite bring herself to say brains.
“His energy, yes.” He looked down at where her hand still rested on his arm. The gold in his skin had brightened slightly where she touched him. “Your touch helps as well,” he added.
She almost snatched her hand away again, but she didn’t feel any ill effects from the contact. Perhaps it wasn’t much different than the way his skin had warmed when she touched him while he was in stasis.
Keeping her hand on his arm, she asked, “What can I do?”
“Just… stay close.” The ship lurched again, and he grimaced. “I need to focus on evasive maneuvers.”
For the rest of the trip she stayed by his side, watching in growing concern as he grew visibly weaker. At one point he told her that they should be beyond the range of the scanners but the ship required his constant attention to remain on course. His skin continued to grow dimmer, but it still brightened again at her touch.
After what felt like an eternity, the distant blue-green orb of Veridia Prime grew larger in their viewport. It resembled Earth from a distance—swirled with white clouds, vast oceans, and large landmasses—although the oceans were more purple than blue and the landmasses a darker green.
