The Xarcarik Chronicles: Cralen

Chapter 6

Cralen ran his fingers across Kinzie's shoulder, raising gooseflesh in their wake. She smiled and snuggled closer pulling the covers tighter around them. The lust they had experienced first was turning into a desire to spend as much time with one another as possible. He was afraid he knew why, but there was no way he could tell her.

"Tell me about where you grew up," he said, instead of voicing his inner thoughts.

"In a farming community on Dell-Thirteen-Eight. It was one of those co-op types where everyone works and everyone shares in the fruits of the labors. I don't know why people think that kind of lifestyle is so ideal."

"You didn't?"

"No," she massaged the back of his arm with her thumb. "But then, I was never interested in farming. Funny, toiling endlessly in a field made me want to scream but I had no issues digging through rocks for hours. Rocks are calm and serene. They listen and don't offer any judgement. And they don't die if you forget to water them." She chuckled and rolled in his arms until she was facing him. "My parents weren't happy with my decision to go off to university. They wanted me to get married when I came of age and start the next generation of farmers. I had to make it on my own."

"Must have been hard on you, leaving everything you knew behind to start a new life."

"It was, and scary, and thrilling all at the same time. But I also know, when I do have kids, I won't try to fit them into a mold of my expectations."

"So, you do want kids?" he asked. Maybe there was hope for him yet. Perhaps she wouldn't be furious with him after all.

"Someday, when I find a partner who I love and respect and who feels the same in return."

All his musings stopped. "Ouch," he replied, rubbing the spot over his heart as if she'd hurt him.

Kinzie laughed and brushed away his hand, replacing it with hers. "I didn't mean it like that. I've only known you for a week. We get along well so far, but who's to say it will last? A soldier is the last person I thought I would ever get along with."

Cralen knew it would last if she would just give it a chance. That was the brilliant part of finding your mate through the pheromones. They really did find the most compatible person to raise your offspring with. It made such a huge difference in the quality of their lives and their likelihood of going on to find their own mates. He grunted, pushing the thought aside.

"I'm not a soldier. At least, not a career one like Traylek."

"Then why are you on a war ship?"

Cralen rolled onto his back and put his hands behind his head. Kinzie followed, tucking herself against his side. "When Xarcarik turn twenty in Consortium years, we are conscripted into the military. We serve four rotations on and eight rotations off until we are thirty-five. This was my last service."

"Everyone?"

"Only the males. No one wants to risk the lives of the females in war. But there are more than enough of us to go around." He absently played with a lock of her hair, smoothing the strands away from her face. "The males who are mated are exempt from conscription. So, all the men on this ship who have mates won't have to return to service once we finish our mission."

"In essence, what you're saying is, you wouldn't be here if you weren't forced to be here." Kinzie reached up, running her fingers over the five o' clock shadow on his chin. She couldn't get over how handsome she found him. If she were still on the mining base, he would be the kind of guy she would admire from afar and hide when he came near.

"One hundred percent," he replied. "But this trip seems to have worked out really well for me." Cralen rolled on top of her, trapping her head between his forearms. He nuzzled her neck, leaving a trail of kisses from her collarbone to the spot below her ear.

Kinzie closed her eyes and took a deep breath, enjoying the sensations both his touch and his scent blossomed in her body. She ran her fingers through his hair, before pushing him away a few inches. "You know this mission is a waste of time."

Cralen sighed, letting his forehead drop onto her shoulder. "So you and your friends keep saying. It is not our place to decide where we go or what we do when we get there."

"But seriously, between you and me, why are you all so interested in the mines?"

Rolling onto his back once more, he resumed his position with his hands behind his head. "From what I understand, the Emperor hopes that by destroying the mines we will hinder the production of new warships."

"And everything else made with kryperium. Like, for example, medical equipment."

"We're hoping the Consortium will prioritize those things over building warships."

"Hah!" Kinzie lay on her side and propped her head on her hand. "I didn't know the Xarcarians were such dreamers."

Kralen glared at her. "We don't have much choice; our population is decimated. Every day they gain more and more territory because we simply don't have the manpower to hold the line. Either we figure something out, or all the worlds we protect from the Consortium will fall, one by one, like stacked ereium tiles."

Kinzie pursed her lips. She could see the pain in his expression as he bit out the words. She didn't know what it was like to watch your civilization crumble around you, knowing that in a few generations it will all be gone. The idea made her heart ache for him and his people. "I wish we could help."

"Do you?" He raised his eyebrows, but his eyes said he didn't believe her.

"I do! It's just... " She paused, looking for the right words. "This isn't the way. It sounds more like a last-ditch effort by people who have run out of ideas."

The 'no shit' look he gave her made Kinzie frown. She lay back down next to him, the silence growing heavier every second. She desperately wanted a way to break it. Maybe she could entice him with her feminine wiles. No, that wouldn't work. First of all, she had no wiles, and secondly, it just seemed wrong. She glanced over. Cralen was staring at the ceiling, unmoving. Kinzie wondered what he was thinking or if he was mad at her. If one of them didn't say something soon, worst case scenarios would start playing in her head and she would spiral down. Bereft of any better ideas, Kinzie poked Cralen in the side.

"What?" He grabbed her hand and looked at her, seeming to realize she was uncomfortable. "What?" he asked again, his tone gentling.

"What are you thinking about?"

"My home," he replied, smiling. "It's pretty deep into the Xarcarik territory. Just a few more weeks and my tour is over. Then we can go home."

"We?"

"Well, seeing as your base is gone, and the Consortium probably thinks you are dead, I just figured... " he said, letting the words trail off. "Anyway, I think you would really love it there. Lots of rocks and whatnot. Just laying around."

Kinzie rolled her eyes. "I'm not that obsessed."

"Really? Because last night you spent a good twenty minutes talking about a specific type of crystal at dinner."

"Whatever."

Cralen tickled her side making her squeal. "My planet has no atmosphere above the surface, so it looks barren and dead. But, if you look closer, there are deep ravines with large sinkholes. Plants grow around the sinkholes creating a lush livable space. Most of the housing areas are carved into the sides of the rock surrounding them. We also have massive cave systems to explore. I could show you if you like."

"Like on a vid screen?"

"Something better," he replied. Smacking her ass, he grinned at her. "Get dressed. We have to go to the other side of the ship."

Intrigued, Kinzie rolled out of bed and threw on a soft jumpsuit make of the same fabric as everything else on the ship. She didn't know where Cralen found clothes her size, but they were far more comfortable than what she brought with her.

He took her hand to lead her to this mystery place.