Chapter 17: 17 Amiri
We all stared at the blank screen. We could only wait now. Wait for the feathered one to send us the coordinates to his home. Until we had those we could not land. Thankfully the location of the planet was in our ship's star map so we could start heading that direction. Once we got the alert, I relaxed.
'Alright we need to check on the Navang. Make sure that creature of her has not eaten all their food again,' I said.
'Earth seems to be a place where they can eat very well. It has its dangers but it seems that as long as you know where to get food and how to be safe about it...' Dimatri said.
'Well the two of them are eating as much as all the Navang combined,' I reminded him. The worry I had about keeping them fed made me harsh.
'It will be okay brother. We can restock and get extra rations on Udariri.'
'We should all go check on the Navang. It will be good to spend time with them,' Misha said. We could all agree with that. The ship was on course and we would be there by the second moon peak. Udariri had four moons. I had never bothered to learn their names or if they even had them.
'We need to let the Princess know after we are done seeing to the Navang,' Kylian pointed out.
'Does she even have what she needs to present herself properly in the way of her people?' I asked.
'I have no idea,' Dimatri said. 'I know she has clothes and fur care hidden away somewhere.'
'The implant on her leg,' Kylian said, 'Scans show it is tech that seemed to have a finite space. My guess is she is able to access it to put objects in and take objects out.'
'Human tech is useful then,' Misha stated. We walked in silence after that. That was until we got to the Navang holding. As the door opened and we stepped inside the smell hit us along with the murky sight of a smoke filled room. I felt my mind cloud. My brothers groaned as we fell to our knees. My thoughts went to the Princess. Where was she? Was she safe?
The Navang around us were walking around just fine and somewhere in the back of my mind I noted that. Whatever this was it could not be poison or they would react to it. It made my limbs feel heavy. Every piece of my fur felt like there was a nerve ending attached to it. The Princess's creature blinked at us lazily. It let out a little chirp that I recognized as a pleased sound. The smoke seemed to be affecting us and the odd creature. Only it seemed relaxed, as if it was used to this.
My thoughts began to become unclear. I needed to get up. I needed to get to the Princess. We could not leave her alone. I saw Sorrel start to drag himself to the door. His movement got the attention of us all. If we could get out. If we could just get outside then maybe it would clear from our systems. It was odd. The longer I was under the effect the less I wanted to move. I could still, it took effort but I could. They seemed to realize it as much as I had and then something changed.
Under the smell of the smoke was the Princess. She had been here. Was here. She was talking to us. She did not seem worried. If anything she was looking at us like we were silly cubs. She ran a hand over my mane. 'It will be okay. I did not think the Heartpetals would affect you,' she said. She knew. She had known about the smoke. We were not being attacked. She moved to Kylian. I watched as she slipped his arm around the back of her neck and over her small shoulders.
'Come on Kylian! As big as you are I can not move you on my own! Move your limbs! I have to get you all out of here before the high hits you!' She was worried. What was the high? How would it hit us? I could not make myself ask as I watched her drag Kylian out the open door. It was all we needed to see. She wanted us out of this room. I did not need to know why. I did not care why she was worried enough to start moving us. Only that she was. Sorrel managed to drag himself through the door. She grabbed Dimatri next.
'It has been too long since I had proper exercise! As soon as I am planet side I am whipping myself into shape again,' this time she seemed to be talking to herself. She seemed to have and easier time carrying Dimatri. Once she got him on his feet he managed a slow walk that was unsteady to say the least. Misha and I continued to crawl as she got him out the door.
'On your back Misha! You are too big for me to carry out like that,' She said. She helped him roll over by putting her hands under one side and lifting. Even as out of it as I was I noticed the way her muscles shape changed under the strain. We knew from her scans that she was made of muscle. A lot of it. She always looked so soft. Sooth curves, and soft features. Nothing about her said threat or that her body hid definition. I was getting my first look at what her soft exterior hid beneath. It was a look that made me freeze.
I watch with fascination as her legs bulked. The the flesh of her lower leg tightened as the muscle there moved up. The muscle in question was clear enough to see. The outward appearance she held shifted as that soft gold brown was stretched and pulled. She was soft to fully accommodate the movement of her body's internal structure. It was a mistake to assume these creatures were weak. Her upper arms widened and her lower arms corded like ours. It was a shocking show of the human body.
Misha flipped onto his back with the effort of them both. 'Good,' she put his tail in his lap. She hooked her arms under his and pulled. 'Use your legs to push,' she told him as she began to pull. Once again her body changed from soft, smooth, and delicate to firm and hard. He did as she said and sure enough each push of his feet against the ground made the progress to the door faster. I renewed my efforts to get there. She came back in from moving Misha to find me.
'It is hitting you the hardest,' she said. 'Alright same as Misha, big guy. You two got some bulk.' Her skin was darker in the haze of smoke but still had a glow to it.
'Why do you not want to mate us?' I found myself asking as she rolled me.
'What?' She asked while moving my tail.
'You smell like you want us. You said you find us nice enough to look at. You touch us. Allow us to touch you. So why do you not want us as mates?'
'It is not that I do not want to mate you Amiri. I would mate with all of you. Not at the same time but I would.' She spoke to me as she hooked her arms under mine and began pulling. 'You- your- the- FUCK!' She yelled as she dropped me outside the door and threw her closed hand towards the wall. I heard a snap and she yelled. She had tried to speak to us verbally a few times but she was so quiet. I thought she, like a few species, was a telepathic speaker.
'What did you do?' Sorrel said.
'I asked her why she does not want to mate us.'
'She wants us brother. She can not have us. She is a Princess. Her duty is to her people. We can not protect them. Do you know how many times I could have done off on my own and mated? I have bad colors but I am big and strong enough to convince a female,' Sorrel's words hurt. That did not make them any less true. He was our leader. Our protection. He had guided all of us as we became full grown.
'Yes and no,' the Princess said. She turned to face us. 'I have a duty to have a child. One that will be strong enough to fly on dragon back. A child smart enough to lead our army to victory. One caring enough to cry as a mother dies bringing her child into this world. Yet, cruel enough to kill the same people they grew up without even blinking. That is what it means to be a human royal.
The problem is that mating you might kill me. Any of you.'
'Because of the cubs would kill you,' Kylian said.
'No the monster length all of you are sporting covered in hooks would kill me before a child ever could.'
'What?' Dimatri asked.
She sighed and raked her fingers through her hair. 'Your... mating organ. It is different from a human male's. A human male's mate organ is smooth for the most part. Even those who do not have a completely smooth organ do not have hooks and spines as you do. If they are like Earth Felines mate organs... the process of mating with one of you would kill me. Or at least that is what would happen if it is indeed like Earth felines.'
Her words made us all look at her. Us mating her would not only hurt her but kill her? Was that why she had refused to take it any further? Of course it was! None of us could blame her for that. 'You said if,' I heard Dimatri say. 'If our zashic is like Earth felines. So how do you find out?'
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone