Page 7 of Neverwylde 6
Chapter 4
Debasement
Gaveer appeared at the tunnel entrance and waved for them to follow him. “A word of advice. Do not speak. Not to each other, and not to D’har Duruk unless he directly asks you a question.” His eyes dropped to Cooter’s rifle and he held out his hand. “I must take your weapons.”
“Ohhh, no.” Cooter pulled his beloved weapon out of reach. “Forget that.”
For the first time, a hard, angry look came over Gaveer’s face. “You must give me your weapons. If you do not, Duruk’s warriors will shoot and kill you the second they see you are armed.”
Sandow placed a hand on Cooter’s shoulder. “Jamse, it’s for our safety.”
Fullgrath stepped past Kelen to give his blaster to the Seneecian. The former weapons master cast Cooter a stern eye but said nothing. After another moment, Cooter finally relinquished the rifle.
They started to walk out of the tunnel when a soft cheep made Kelen pause. A glance over at Dox revealed Five sitting on the young man’s shoulders. The little furry creature knew something was amiss. Dox reached up to take his friend into his hand when Kelen stopped him.
“No, Dox. He has to stay here. He can’t come with us.”
“But…friend.” Dox gave her a pleading look.
Kelen shook her head. “He belongs here with his own kind,” she gently admonished.
A short conversation was exchanged. It was clear neither one wanted to part, but in the end Five allowed Dox to lower him to the ground. The furry gave one final heartbreaking chirp as Dox turned away.
With her arm around Dox’s shoulders, Kelen and the others followed the Seneecian out of the tunnel, through the temple, and over to the large, arching entrance where Kyber and the rest were waiting. She kept her face blank, but her eyes never left the cadre of Seneecian warriors who stood there with their weapons drawn.
More interesting was the big leader with the black fur. As she drew closer, she could see some resemblance in the man’s face. Also, that he had dark brown streaks in his pelt, whereas Kyber’s hair was totally black.
Duruk watched her with narrowed eyes as she approached and stopped beside Kyber. But when her husband reached over and took her hand in his, the Seneecian’s eyes widened in surprise. He started to say something when Kyber spoke first.
“This is Kelen Chambliss, my Confirmed.”
It was like watching a bomb go off amid the group of warriors. Shock and revulsion went through them, leaving them stunned in its wake.
Kelen saw Duruk’s nostrils flare. His breathing quickened, giving her the impression he was sniffing her. If he was, she knew she had to be giving off a noxious odor, considering she’d been wearing the same uniform for how many days?
Duruk gave her a second head-to-toe examination, strongly focusing on her genital area and breasts. She could imagine what he might be thinking. What did she look like unclothed? Bare skin and hairless.Probably judging how repulsed he would be if he tried to make love to such an abomination.When he turned his attention back to Kyber, he was barely able to keep his rising anger in check.
“You would besmirch our family house by claiming this gakking skint as your Confirmed?”
Kyber fired back. “Speak Terranese. They have earned that right.”
An odd expression crossed Duruk’s face and he took a step back. A faint smile curled one corner of his mouth. It resembled the same kind of jesting smile Kyber would give her. But in this case, instead of teasing her, Duruk’s was condescending.
“I see what you are doing. Very clever of you.”
“What do you mean?”
Duruk waved a finger at Kelen. “Claiming the female for yourself to protect her. A rather reckless move, and a foolhardy one. I did not expect this kind of duplicity from you.”
“Ihaveclaimed her,” Kyber murmured.
Duruk shook his head, clearly dismissing Kyber’s claim. Kelen started to rebuke the man, but Kyber must have suspected he would and squeezed her hand. She took the subtle hint and bit her lip.
Mellori and Sandow brought Plat forward. Duruk immediately stepped forward and removed the Seneecian’s gag.
“Arrest Kyber Nau!” Plat demanded. “Arrest him now!”
Kelen half-expected Duruk to order his men to reach for Kyber. If they did, she was prepared to throw herself in front of her husband. Instead, Duruk tilted his head to one side and eyed the former D’har for a moment. Giving a wave of his hand, a warrior moved up to cut Plat free of his bonds. The man quickly moved away from Kyber and his group to stand next to Duruk.
