Your Protector ✓

|01|

Elik

My skin is crawling. Heat rises up my neck, and I stare angrily at the buildings in the valley below me. The sky is dark, only lit by a smear of stars glowing onto the roofs.

There are females down there. Real females.

My kind have no females on our planet. For some years we have scoured the universe for those precious creatures that will bring us companionship, kits. How can we survive without females? It's not possible. It's not right to continue on without finding them.

And we have found them, here on earth.

I've never heard of humans before. None of us have. Aside from Torint. I look over at my comrade who crashed here by chance. He was the first one to find the humans, to take a mate. It's fate that brought us here chasing after him. Apparently, this planet has been through a lot already. There have been wars that killed most of their males.

The females are ripe for the taking.

The few males that are left alive are evil, at least that's what I've heard from Torint. A group of human males stole his mate and tried to torture her. A female. It's preposterous. How can anyone think of harming a precious female?

They are the future. Our destiny.

That's why I'm seething angry. Torint also has information that more females are being held captive in their grasp. They use them for their pleasure, taken without their consent. Such violence and evil should not be taken lightly.

Torint knows this as well, that's why he slaughtered the males that dared steal his mate away from their den.

A mate. That is something I'm still shocked over. Torint is lucky, and he knows it as well. Any of us would do anything to have one of our own.

I look over at Yatik, and then Umner, and finally Torint and Tillip. We're all ready for a fight to rescue the females.

"We approach with caution. We do not know if they have weapons." I inform my team, and we slowly move down the hill in formation. We all are on edge. The thought of a female in danger is not taken lightly.

This mission is essential.

When we get closer to the little buildings that already stink with awful smells, I press my lips together in anger. No female should have to endure this.

We all surround the buildings, curiously searching our surroundings for any sign of life.

"The scent is stale. They must have fled after you killed the others." Notices Umner, and I know his nose is the best. He's right, the male sent is strong, but it's not fresh. It has to be at least a day old.

I try not to growl. They fled like scared little kits.

Tillip rolls his shoulders beside me, shaking his head.

"Let's hope they didn't take the females with them." He whispers, and I want to slap him. That kind of thinking will not help any of us. We must keep our spirits up. I'm too antsy to correct him.

I give the males a signal to move in, a wordless hand signal to go ahead. They follow my order. They burst one of the buildings open, the door crashing down.

It reveals a mess of a living place. This was where they nested. It is disgusting. Making a gruff sound, I shake my head. I'm positive the females are not here, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't search for them just in case.

"Check everywhere. Tillip and I will search the next building." They agree with short nods before entering. I let Tillip follow me as I quickly move on to our next target.

We easily breach the entrance. With a clang, the scent of fear and death assault me, and I choke. It's overpowering. It's horrifying.

I see the cages. The bars of metal in the form of a barbaric box to keep someone in. I pop my jaw. They're here. The females are still here.

Going to the first cage, ripping the barred door right off with one hand. The pure rage that courses through me has no end. I bend to my knees, focusing on the tiny creature in the cage.

"It's alright, female. You can come out now." I whisper, knowing well she cannot understand me. Our language is strange to these humans. They have no translation devices, no way to know what we say. I can only hope my calming tone coaxes her.

She slowly crawls forward.

"Yes, that's it." I encourage her, and I'm shocked when she throws herself into my arms. She's delicate, trembling. Little sobs wrack her chest. Salty tears run down her pretty face, leaving clean trails down her dirt stained cheeks.

I hold her to me, her thin arms wrap around my middle and she sags. She feels perfect in my arms, but I know she is not alright. She needs love and care right now, a gentle hand to guide her and protect her.

I'll be that for her. I know there's nothing that can stop me from accomplishing that. I hold her in my lap as the others find us. Tillip explains what's happened, I hear him mention that one of the humans is dead.

Rage grips me, but I don't let the soft female in my arms see it. Pathetic males, murdering helpless females. There is no honor in it.

Umner tears open another cage, freeing the only other living female. His jaw is set fiercely. He is as angry as the rest of us.

"You are free, female." He insists, and he can't keep the harshness out of his voice. The tiny thing in my hold shivers, crying softly into my chest.

The other female doesn't come out. Umner holds out his hand, trying to show she is in no danger. She remains where she is.

"We are safe. Come out of there." I understand his frustration. She has been locked in this filthy place for too long, and now that she is safe, she still refuses to be free.

But she doesn't know we mean her no harm.

"She cannot understand what you're saying." I remind him. He shrugs, looking disappointed. He eyes the female in my arms, and I clutch her tighter.

I stick my face in her stringy hair. Beneath the stink of body odor and fear, I detect her natural scent. It is sweet and delicate.

Umner expected the female to hop in his lap like this one did for me, and his jealousy is warranted. I am lucky to touch a female. I've never touched one, held one, comforted one.

And now, I have rescued one. She is traumatized, afraid. I know that as long as I'm around, she will never know fear again.

Thank you for reading and voting! You are all too kind. I will try to update when I can. Love y'all!