The first thing Kilnor noted as he reentered the cell was that Sunny was still unconscious, curled up in the position he had left her in. So focused was he on moving to her, he almost didn't register the slamming of the hatch as the Olcens left. It didn't matter anyway. At this moment, only Sunny did.
She was cool to the touch. Her body temperature was usually cooler than his, but as Kilnor held the back of his hand to Sunny's forehead, it seemed that she was even cooler than she should have been. With an angry rumble, Kilnor attributed that to the fact that she had been unceremoniously soaked in water. Moving carefully, he pulled her into his arms, willing her to absorb some of his heat. He was careful about where he touched her, recognising the large spots of purple, blue and red all over her body as bruises. Miotal's didn't bruise - but they had trade agreements with planets whose inhabitants did - and Kilnor knew that applying pressure to the coloured spots would further pain the small female.
Instead, he focused on stroking her hair. As a leanh, he had always found the motion of his mother playing and smoothing his hair soothing, and he hoped Sunny would find it comforting. He let out a soft purr. It was not right for a little creature such as Sunny to be injured so brutally. He wondered what exactly it was that had happened when he lost consciousness, and berated himself for failing her. It did not matter to him that he had been weaponless and outnumbered, he should have found someway to protect her.
He wondered where his brothers-in-arms were. It had been weeks since he had first been taken, at that ill-fated ambush. He had not expected his rescue to take this long, and a rescue was even more necessary now that he had Sunny to protect.
He cuddled her close.
"They will come, little rianhar," he murmured through his purr. "They will come."
Kilnor rocked her for what seemed like hours, her breathing slow and even, with no sign of her waking. It seemed a long time for her to be unconscious, and to distract himself from his growing worry, Kilnor spoke, telling her of his world and his home, of the natural beauty of his planet.
"The mountains are large," he said. "And in the cold times, they are buried in snow, becoming smooth mounds of white, with small pockets of trees found in the valleys. It is in one of those valleys that I make my home. You will like it, I..."
He trailed off. In the last moments, he had been sure he saw her eye-lashes flutter.
"Sunny?" he said. He stroked her face, avoiding the side that was swollen and puffy from where an Olcen had struck her. "Sunny, are you well?"
A soft moan met his words. She had heard him. Kilnor almost felt like dancing in relief.
"Hurts..." the word was mostly unintelligible, but Kilnor understood it. His supposition had been correct, then. He and sunny would be able to communicate. He was glad for it, but saddened that the case had been the brutal beating Sunny had received.
"I know, rianhar," he soothed, cuddling her closer. "I know."
With a small sigh at his words, Sunny burrowed into him, seeking his heat, before falling asleep again. The way she was now curled, Kilnor could feel every puff of her breath against his chest, and he allowed the rhythmic feeling, plus the relief that Sunny had woken, however briefly, to lull him into joining her in sleep.
When he awoke, some time later, it was to see that Sunny was still asleep. Her breath still puffed in even increments. He looked her over without moving her, his mind calmer and clearer now that he had slept. Some of her bruises had changed colour, darkening in the hours they had both slept. The right side of her face was grotesquely swollen, the immediate area around her right eye an unpleasant shade of purple, the eyelid seemingly stretched tight. Kilnor doubted she would be able to open it
The amount of damage inflicted was surprising, seeing as they were to be sold. The only conjecture Kilnor could draw was that they were evidently still a distance from their final destination, as the Olcen must have known that Sunny would have time to heal before they sold her. After all, damaged property would not yield as high a price.
Longer on the ship was good, Kilnor noted. On the ship they were together, which would make it easier for his team to find them. After that... well, there were really too many possibilities to calculate, the only surety being if they were split up she would be that much harder to find.
Sunny made a soft snort of snuffling sound in her sleep, curling even further into Kilnor's chest. Her nose wrinkled slightly as the tip brushed across the scale plate of Kilnor's chest.
Kilnor's eyes traced her features. By all rights, he shouldn't find her attractive. Her skin lacked soft metallic sheen of his people, and she had no shiny scales dotting her face. Instead, her eyes were a soft blue, without the glow he was used to, and her skin was creamy and pale. Even the textures were different, her skin was soft, covered in fine down. But after days trapped together in the same cell, Kilnor no longer saw any of this when he looked at her. Instead, he just saw Sunny, and he thought that she as beautiful, strong despite all of her weaknesses. Careful not to scratch her skin with his claws, he traced her features with a finger, lingering over her lips.
She made that snuffling sound again, her eyelids fluttering as she woke.
"How are you feeling?" Kilnor spoke in Miotalan, keeping his voice gentle, not wanting to startle her. Her last conscious thoughts before succumbing to her injuries could not have been pleasant.
"Kilnor?" Sunny's voice did not rise above a hoarse whisper. "Yes, rianhar," he murmured in response. "I am here."
Sunny's eyes were open, staring into his. She looked at him blankly, clearly not understanding. Miotalan must not have been programmed into her implant. Kilnor wondered if she had many languages programmed, and if Miotalan being excluded had been a conscious decision.
Focusing on the language he wished to speak, he repeated his words. Her brow furrowed.
"How..." her voice cracked, sounding rough and distorted. Kilnor did not like to think about how much she must have screamed for her voice to sound as it did now. "How can you speak English?"
"English?" Kilnor asked her. "Is that what you are?"
Sunny shook her head, the movement weak. "No... I am a human."
Kilnor frowned. "I have never heard of a human before. What planet are you from?"
Sunny opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out. She motioned towards the water. Cursing his stupidity, Kilnor looked between Sunny and the water. Should he put her down or... holding Sunny even tighter, Kilnor lifted her into his arms and moved the both of them towards the water. Opening the bottle for her, he helped bring it to her mouth, cupping the back of her head as she drank.
"Slowly," he directed, not wanting her to choke if she drank too much, nor wanting it to upset her stomach. Her abdomen was one big bruise, Kilnor suspected that an Olcen had kicked her there, and he was sure her stomach must be feeling tender.
After a few sips, she pushed at his hand, and he obligingly lowered the water.
"From Earth," she answered his question, her voice sounding slightly smoother now that she'd had some water.
Earth. Kilnor had never heard of the planet, which made sense, he supposed, considering that he'd never before seen or heard of a human. Sunny's planet must be very far indeed.
"How can you speak English?" Sunny repeated her question, and Kilnor realised that he had never answered her question.
He tapped his head.
"Translation implant," he said. "That is what the Olcen's were taking us to the medical bay for."
Sunny still looked confused. "Then why couldn't I understand you when I first woke up?"
Kilnor frowned slightly. Trust Sunny to ask the question he wasn't quite sure he had the answer to.
"Your implant does not have my language programmed," he answered her. "And before you ask, I am not sure why that is."
Kilnor suddenly smiled, oddly happy even in these circumstances. He and Sunny were talking to each other. Not just communicating through a variety of gestures and miming, but actually trading words.
Despite the multitude of questions he had for the small human, Kilnor did not put them to her. The unhealthy rasp of her voice told him that she should not be speaking, she should be resting her voice. Instead, he spoke to her, now that she could understand him, telling her of his home, and his family and his teammates.
***
Sunny allowed the sound of Kilnor's voice to lull her back to sleep once more, despite the fact she had only just woken up. The entirety of her body ached, her stomach felt particularly bruised, and the side of her face throbbed, seeming to pulse in time with her heartbeat. Her throat was dry and scratchy, like it had been rubbed raw with sandpaper, and it still felt tight, like a noose was slowly closing in around her neck.
In sleep, the physical pain mostly vanished, though the nightmares remained. For nights after that, Sunny awoke screaming and crying in the night, Kilnor jerking to awareness next to her, before pulling her face into his chest, stroking her hair and crooning to her softly, his rumbling purr sending waves of comfort through her.
As time passed, Sunny's injuries slowly healed, and Kilnor resumed his efforts to get her into shape, the exercises now interspersed with self-defence lessons. Where before Sunny had pouted in an attempt to avoid the exercise, she now threw her entire self into it, determined not to be a victim. Kilnor warned her at the start of every lesson that part of being a warrior was knowing when not to fight, and on the surface, Sunny accepted that. She knew, however, that if push came to shove, and she knew it was hopeless, she'd still want to give as good as she got - leave them something to remember her by.
Training and talking were the two things Sunny and Kilnor had to pass the time, the cell seeming to grow smaller and smaller the more time went on. It occurred to Sunny, as it had not previously occurred to her, that the strange aliens that had captured her must have a destination in mind. That night, around the time they anticipated the night cycle would begin, and had curled up in their corner in preparation for sleep, Sunny asked Kilnor.
"Where are they taking us?" Sunny asked, tilting her head to meet Kilnor's face. His cheekbones were sharp in the dim light, shadows lingering in the hollows of his cheeks. His scales glittered, like someone had painstakingly stitched gold sequins in patterns onto his skin. He could not have looked any more handsome - or any less human.
Kilnor gave her a blank look. "A slave market."
Sunny returned his blank look with a horrified one. A slave market. She hadn't thought of that possibility, though now that Kilnor had stated it so bluntly, she couldn't see what other possibilities there could be.
But to be a slave. Sunny couldn't think of any good reason for anyone wanting a female slave. To be honest, Sunny couldn't think of a good reason for anyone to own a slave, period.
"Is it... do you know what slave market they're taking us to? Is it one you know of?" Sunny's question was tentative.
There was a beat of silence whilst Kilnor processed Sunny's words, thinking through the translation.
"It may be," Kilnor said slowly. "I am not sure."
Gold eyes stared into his own, and Sunny wondered how she had once been terrified by them. Looking into them now, she could only see safety.
"Kilnor," Sunny said, her voice sounding desperate and ragged, her breath coming fast. "I don't want to be a slave."
It was a stupid thing to say. Nobody ever wants to be a slave. For obvious reasons, it's not a desirable life choice. But Kilnor didn't mock her for her foolish words. Instead, he raised one hand to Sunny's face, tracing the line of her cheek. "I will get you out, rianhar."
There was that word again. Sunny had noticed Kilnor using it in reference to her, but he had not translated it, and she had not asked him to. She liked the notion of it being an endearment, and as long as she was ignorant to its true meaning, it could be.
Sunny covered his hand - his skin hot against hers. "I know," she replied softly, blinking back the tears that had filled her eyes. "I know you will."
She had to believe that. For her peace of mind.
He moved his hand, tucking her against him and stretching his body out to curl around her to keep her warm. Sunny snuggled closer, relaxing into his heat.
"But what-" Sunny was cut off by a finger pressed against her lips. "Shh," he breathed. "Sleep now."
And she did.