Orange Sky, page 12
part #1 of Manasty Series
I stopped. The structure looked very much like a covered terrace. Long, dried leaves served as a roof. Four strong wooden posts acted as pillars and vine-like plants decorated the sides. They were as golden yellow as the sky.
It took me a few steps up the stone stairs to reach it. The platform was big. But lo and behold, there were pillows scattered on it. Huge floor pillows in many different colors. Though the most dominant was the silver and black, there was blue, yellow, orange, and a hint of purple.
I dived into the pillows and smelled them. I expected to sneeze but did not. I smelled a hint of oil and burnt metal, like Zirc.
I looked behind me; lion-Zirc loomed at the opening. My muscles tensed. Is this the part where he eats me?
He scoffed at me. He lurked inside, and I lay still, stomach down on the bundle of pillows. He went around the area and, for some reason, picked up the other colored pillows and threw them on the far side of the platform. If he wasn’t so big, he’d be cute playing with the pillows.
He got rid of the pillows except for the silver and black ones. I wondered why.
Then his huge mouth opened near me and I scrambled back. He was still in lion-Zirc mode. He took a tiny pillow from where I’d been lying and made strangling sounds.
I narrowed my eyes. Is he laughing at me? Well, it’s hard not to react when a huge jaw full of incisors is near my face, right?
I huffed and still heard those sounds from him. For some reason, he delicately positioned the tiny platinum steel color pillow. I wondered why he took it away when it was clearly the same shade of silver and black?
Maybe it was his teeth pillow. I am, in fact, surprised by the calm I felt. So, on this planet, people were cat-like. Felines. I hadn’t met anyone that looked like another species. I expected different characters like the ones I saw in a Ghibli movie. But no, everything felt almost the same as Earth. Except they were more feline. And let’s not forget they could change into beasts. Still, it was somewhat reassuring that the folks around here used weapons to defeat their enemies. And not their mouth to eat them.
He was once again sitting on his haunches. But he looked smaller now. Not the gigantic lion-Zirc that entered the lanai a while ago. So maybe he was changing back to his normal size. Still not an Earth-lion size. He was a little taller than me now.
I carefully sat my butt on a mound of pillows at the entrance facing the way we’d come from.
He scoffed again and I felt his breath against my left arm. I stayed still. His head was bowed and he was looking at the wounds on my legs. Even though he was just checking my left leg, I still felt like he might chew it off.
He raised his lion head. This close, I could see the irises of his eyes. They were the same as when he was humanoid. He really had beautiful steel-grey eyes with cat-like slits of blue and grey. He seemed to be asking me if I was okay.
I slowly lifted my hand and he froze. Slowly, I reached out and touched his silver mane. Strange how soft it was. Unlike his normal coarse hair when it’s shorter.
He licked my wrist and the whole length of my arm. What the…? It felt like a cat’s tongue. But it wasn’t rough like sandpaper. It was just right. Something stung though, and I noticed that one of my wounds felt too hot. I took a closer look, and what do you know, it was healing right before my eyes.
I was pretty sure my eyes were like saucers. So, their saliva had healing properties. How convenient.
I let my arm drop. He watched me while he licked the wounds on my legs. First, the left, then the right.
At least he did not use his teeth to peel off my clothes. My tunic was already torn open where there were wounds. Giving him easy access to lick and heal them.
I probably spent the whole afternoon with him licking my wounds. When my stomach grumbled at some point, he made me eat the beef jerky stuff. I do not wish to know what it was made of. As usual, it was very salty. I used his water flask to get some of that fresh water. I drank more than I ate the jerky stuff.
It was strange how they ate salty foods when my neighbor’s cat back home didn’t like to.
At some point, I got drowsy, and he curled around me, not too much so I could still feel the cool breeze from the surrounding hills. How I wished I could just stay here and be at peace, at least for a moment. Or days. And not think of anything at all. Of being abducted, betrayed, the deaths.
Strange that I felt at ease now with Zirc, err, Silver Beast. He was in his beast mode now. Do they have a symbiotic relationship or they were one entity? I must tell Zirc that I feel more at ease with his beast when I learn to speak his language if my translator won’t be fixed anytime soon. His claws holding me were gentler that when he is not a beast. Right now, the beast was more a gentleman than his ‘human’ self.
The jerk.
16
ZIRC
The beast was content. He and I were always in sync. Looking at the alien female beside me, it was a wonder he didn’t want to eat her. Still, I continued to lick at her wounds. I only do this to select Manasties. And some feared my beast. Honestly, the only one who was calm enough around my beast was Roqs. Though his alpha beast was also something to behold.
Strange that I separated Roqs’ pillows from the rest. That tiny pillow, he said, represented his care for me. In reality, I knew it was his tolerance of how long we could be separated from each other. We grew up together, slept together, and dreamed of being lifetime mates. But the gods were not kind to us. Especially to me.
Everyone, including me and Roqs, thought we were mates and would lead the Silver Tribe.
The female stirred. Her small nose scrunched. She looked so strange. She said she came from a distant planet. I searched our database and uploaded her image, but nothing came up. She might be an exotic creature. Axad mentioned the ship that blew up was a pirate ship of the highest kind. Another ship had quickly taken the other life capsules that floated around our planet. The High Council hadn’t even bothered to stop them.
The High Council beasts were getting old. How can they not care about the slaves in space?
Brin. She did mention she came from that blue planet. No one must know. There were many tales about the blue planet from that region of the universe. That sector is forbidden by the Galactic Council. If one of the tales was true, her life is in danger.
I cannot bring her with me. What happened last night proved that she cannot join me in my journey to the High Council. This place was safe. It was surrounded by my smell. The boundaries will keep others from encroaching on my territory.
And there were enemies everywhere. Even the most peaceful tribe on this planet had deserters. Hah, who am I kidding? A quarter of this planet was made of deserters who enslaved the weak among us. The minority. I was not surprised that the gangs had spies in each tribe. But why did that deserter take my female to Aocs? The betrayer was a slave to Axad’s parents for more than a decade. I do not understand why he took my female and then, at the last minute, defended her.
The Aoc leader was foolish. And he was not significant among other gangs. But the other Manasties with him. The one with the many guns. He emitted a dangerous aura. But he was not a match for my Silver Beast.
Even though I was in my beast form, I could clearly see, hear, and remember everything. Unlike the last time, I unleashed the beast. Very few people lived to tell the tale when I took this form. Strange that the beast didn’t consider her a threat. Stranger still, my beast was frantic to get her outside rather than kill the others.
I felt her small hands squeezing my tail. She squeezed again, then snuggled up to it with a slight tilt to the corner of her mouth. In her sleep, she grabbed onto it like a pillow. Something tugged inside me, seeing her smile.
Fuck, I needed to get away from her soon.
Yet my beast and I, always in sync, settled down alongside her. Curving my body to protect her from the strong winds.
Tomorrow, I would show her around this place my parents bought for me as my sanctuary. Maybe they knew as far back as I was small that I was not meant to lead the Silver Tribe. What they did—
I slammed those thoughts down. Now was not the time to dwell on those memories.
What was important was that I had this place. Only a few beings know of it. Surrounded by high mountains and hillsides, very few ventured into this area. And the mist surrounding it was enough of a deterrent even for the gangs.
I'd wanted to take her to Crix so he could fix her auditory problem. So I could understand her. I felt it would be safe for her at Crix’s palace. Yet, my beast took her here. My safe haven. Even Roqs did not find this place appealing. It was okay for us to meet here for twenty sun rotations. But never more than that. His beast knew that their place was at the Silver Tribe.
The High Council needed the crystal I was holding. It was like a heavy stone that was pulling me down. Funny how I could envision myself, Roqs, and the female here. Our friends could visit every now and then. But no, Roqs was the Alpha of our tribe. He needed to lead, not spend days, months, or years at my sanctuary on a whim. Maybe I was at that point in my life to settle down. All of these years working as a mercenary. There did come a point in a Manasty’s life when we needed to settle down. Mine, I imagined, wouldn’t be anytime soon. In fact, I saw myself dying in a joyous battle with Roqs at my side.
The female was moaning. I smelled her arousal yet again, enough to stir my desire. Good. All of these musings were making me doubt myself. Hah, who am I kidding? I was always aroused by her. Many Manasties had sex with other female species but we were, unfortunately, sterile.
She was waking up. I smelled her again. It was best I switched to my other self. I would savor these last few days with her, training her how to survive, and in between, thoroughly sate my appetite. And forget about her.
No, the beast whispered.
The more reason I needed to get away from her. Why was she triggering the Silver Beast’s protective instincts? Ha, who was I kidding? I do know. She was small and defenseless. And this place, this was my sanctuary. My domain. No one would attack her here.
My beast continued to grumble, irritated at me for even considering leaving her even though my beast knew the danger I would face in the future. I could always come back here anytime I wish. And the crystal I left with her would protect her. First, I must deliver the relic, find Roqs Coone and the others. Then I would return here.
I hope you enjoyed this first book. The next chapter gives a sneak peek at what happens next. Now available on Amazon.
PREVIEW OF NEXT BOOK
Brynn
Day 6 without Zirc.
I would not despair. I should be thankful that he’d finally left me!
I brushed away the tears running down my face. Again.
Was this what they called the Stockholm Syndrome?
I refused to be a victim. I would be stronger than this. First things first, I needed to survive. I was an Anderson. My family thrived on crisis. Better not think about them right now. My heart got pulled whenever I thought about the family and friends I’d left behind. Yet, they were also a source of how I could survive this.
My dad would ask, what do I have right now? There was enough food in the shed to last a year. Strange that I had never worried about food before. Born in Colorado, food was not scarce. I never had to worry there would be no more food to harvest the following year.
Note to self. I was not on American soil anymore.
I glanced out the window. There was no shadow. I went out and checked the water mill. One thing I liked about this place, it was never too humid. I dropped to my knees to look at my science project. I collected the condensation heating the water from the orange river, which I discovered on the third day I felt more courageous to explore farther. I was experimenting with this process just in case I needed to leave this place.
In case Zirc comes back and takes me away.
“This should be enough for two days!” Vocalizing my thoughts somewhat lessened my feelings of depression and loneliness.
Back home, many people would wish for this tranquil space where you own a small part of the world. Zirc said no one would harm me here because this was a safe zone. Having a safe zone did not make me safe. I saw no garrison, fort, or weapon that would make this a safe zone. Plus, did it mean the people on this planet were at war with each other? Or were they at war with another alien race?
So many questions, no one to answer them.
“Hmm.” I tasted the water, and it was just about right. I still remembered my high school project on how to purify water. Raised in a mining town, the school taught us how to make safe water in case we get lost in the mountains or caves. I did not want to experiment with rocks and sediment, so heating it was the safest way. However, the taste was as pure as the water from the wells. I’d found five more of them. Unfortunately, I was not strong enough to lift any of them. I was surprised the two open wells stayed clean. No rain since I'd been here. But why the cover?
“What are you doing?”
I screamed and felt like I jumped three feet high.
I scrambled away from where I was kneeling. I should have run back to the cabin, but I ended up leaning on the post of the water mill.
My eyes went wide and I stared up at the other wall. All the blood pooled at my feet. I felt like Alice staring at the Cheshire cat.
His long body was lying on top of the wall, and one of his arms supported his head. His other arm remained at rest along his lean body. But his tail was swishing back and forth.
When my eyes adjusted against the suns, I saw that he had the same coloring a—
“Zirc!” I exclaimed happily.
But I realized my mistake at the same time he stiffened. I tried to plaster myself against the wall again.
The man continued to look at me, but I couldn't tell the color of his eyes. He had stripes on his hands and neck that were almost black, not metallic silver like Zirc. His clothes were almost the same as well.
He did not move from his position. But continued to gaze at me.
His tail twitched in sync with my heartbeat. Had he been here the whole time since Zirc left?
Maybe he was tired of watching me, so he made his presence known.
I waited a beat, then held my breath as he moved upright, then jumped.
I felt that twinge in my gut as he cleared the twenty-foot wall. I should be used to it by now. People here were not like me. They could jump really high, suffering no fracture. They could change shapes.
And as I gazed into his eyes, I saw they had claws and sharp teeth that could kill me instantly. Or slow and torturously.
I tried to shift away from him, but he stopped. Just three feet away from me. I should have run sooner. I knew he could reach me almost instantly when he wanted to. They were fast. Really fast.
“Who are you?” he asked. His tone was friendly, but his eyes were shrewd.
How to answer?
I tried to evade his eyes, which reminded me of Zirc.
“Look at me.”
His sharp voice made me look at him.
“I asked, who are you? And where did you come from?” He looked relaxed, his arms at his sides, but I felt the tension coming from him. Like any wrong move, he could grab a weapon under his coat and shoot me with it. I barely noticed his coat that fit him like a second skin. In fact, from this distance, what he wore looked like a sheepskin leather jacket.
Suddenly, I felt dowdy wearing this tunic, my leggings worn out. I needed to get my head out of the gutter and think sharp. Hello, there’s an excellent reason we should not talk to strangers. But it was hard to think straight when faced with a stranger who looked eerily like a Dolce & Gabbana model.
“Do you not speak? Look me in the eye.”
Duh, can’t a girl just look first at his magnificent physique? I cleared my throat. “My name is Brynn Anderson. I’m from—” I stopped. It felt weird to say it, but I had to say it. “I’m from Earth.”
He just narrowed his eyes at me.
“Say that again?”
Oh. Maybe he can understand me?
“My name is Brynn. Do you know where Earth is? I landed here, I don’t know, maybe two weeks ago, though it felt like years already. Zirc helped me when I crash-landed here, but he left me almost a week ago—”
He held his hand up, which I understood for me to stop. Good to know some things were universal.
He looked at me for a few seconds, placed his arm down, and then said, “I do not know what language that is. It’s not in our auditory program. I’m sorry but I think I need to fix you.”
I had no time to react when he quickly drew something from that famous coat of his and fired. I gasped and barely felt his arms around me as I fell. Whatever it was, it completely stunned me, and I immediately lost consciousness.
ALSO BY ALY TATUM
🧡Manasty Series
Meet Brynn and read about her adventures
on Planet Manasty.
Orange Sky: A Sci Fi Alien Romance, #1
She imagined she will meet a guy on her vacation.
And she did. Right after she crashed on his planet.
Orange Town: A Sci Fi Alien Romance, #2
Zirc left me.
Alone.
Just when I’m ready to accept my new reality,
another alien found me. Is he a friend or foe?
Orange Lake: A Sci Fi Alien Romance, #3
Mercenary. Alpha. Spy.
The first is my savior.
The second considers me a competition.
The third one - let’s just say
he is not happy I am tagging along on this mission.
Orange Mountain: A Sci Fi Alien Romance, #4
Meet Nim and Sim.
The Royal Purple Twinsies.
Chaos ensued when I encountered the grumpy royals.
But where is my Zirc?
Coming Soon
Orange Tundra, Book #5 (April 2024)
