Page 55 of Tears of Tungsten
The Claiming
Jar’yd
One month later, Nexus time
It had been a little over a month since I’d brought Selene to Eos. We’d spoken every day. I hadn’t tried to kiss her or touch her intimately, and in return, she hadn’t blasted me away again.
Two days into her stay, I’d taken her on a brief tour of the lower levels of Nexus. I knew she’d eventually try to escape, but I couldn’t keep her trapped in the den either. That was no way to treat a mate.
Hilariously, it was when she met my team that she realized we’d crossed paths even after the tournament. Teela was avoiding her, but the rest of my group had decided to show me their full support. Danadu had even said she thought a meeting with Selene was necessary. She hadn’t been Terran, but she was female, and she had a different perspective than me.
The moment she saw them, Selene had her epiphany. “You… You were on Mercury that day! I remember now.”
She was looking between Ostheo and Viu’an, who were among the most easily recognizable Heliads. Despite having the same photon glow I did—in their Heliad form, at least—it was impossible to miss their unusual appearance. Viu’an was particularly memorable, and his enthusiasm over Selene’s presence—and possibly her breasts—hadn’t changed.
He wriggled his tentacles in her general direction, which led to Danadu grabbing him and squeezing him in her rocky arms. “Sorry about that. This creature is naturally so lecherous I have no idea why we even put up with him.”
“It’s because I’m so adorable,” Viu’an replied. “Also, you love my lecherous ways.”
Kallios slapped Viu’an with his paw, then made his way to Selene and me. “Just ignore him. I promise we’re mostly not insane here. Mostly.”
“Err… Right.”
I made all the introductions, and Selene was as polite as could be expected of her. She even petted Ostheo’s head the exact way he liked, although she was clearly uncertain if she was doing the right thing. We didn’t address the huge elephant in the room, not until we got back to the mating den, at least.
“You lied to me,” she accused.
“I didn’t. It just didn’t occur to me to mention the trip to Mercury. And honestly, I thought you’d figured out the truth by now. It’s not like the Great Mother sends a million random Heliads in Terran areas.”
“Yes, but I don’t know the Great Mother, do I?” Selene asked, throwing her arms up in exasperation. “The only person I know here is you.”
“You know my team now as well. You’ll meet everyone else gradually.”
Selene growled and directed a magical blast at me. The Heliad photon shield easily absorbed it, but I still got the message. That had not been the right thing to say. “All right, all right. I’ll go. But I do mean what I said. I didn’t intend to lie to you.”
“In the big picture, intentions don’t matter all that much. It’s actions that count.”
I couldn’t argue with her, but I still hoped that my actions would prove that I meant what I said, and that we truly were supposed to be together.
In hindsight, it had been a foolish hope. Three days after her meeting with my group, she tried to escape for the first time.
I had no idea how she’d managed to open the den lock. It was supposed to be impossible, and the only ones who could go in and out were me and the sun spirits. But somehow, she’d done it, and she’d forced the sphere to listen to her.
Unfortunately for her, mating dens weren’t so easy to escape and I’d foreseen this possible turn of events as well.
I was in the training nucleus, in a sparring session with Kallios, when I sensed what had happened. The jolt of photons that coursed through me almost made me take my friend’s head off. At the last moment, he ducked underneath my photon blade. He ended up having to sacrifice his tail in the process, but it was better than the alternative.
As I watched the appendage fall to the ground, I grimaced and shot him an apologetic look. “Sorry about that. I got distracted.”
“No problem,” he replied. “I’ll grow it back. Besides, I was getting irritated with you not taking me seriously. Our opponents won’t be so considerate, you know.”
I did know, but I also didn’t much like chopping off Kallios’s limbs. Oh, well. I’d have to make it up to him somehow, in a different way. For the moment, I was needed elsewhere.
“I’ll keep that in mind. I’m sorry, but I have to go now.”
“Your flame-haired female, is it?” Kallios smirked. “Go and have fun. Make sure you breed her properly.”
I didn’t bother to reply. I wanted nothing more than to do exactly that, and who knew? Maybe he was right and this was my chance to give Selene a little lesson.
