Jaxil blushed when Terra said Lunairans were strange for thinking that meeting under such circumstances was pleasant. “That’s not what I meant,” he muttered hurriedly. “I was just trying to be polite. I don’t know what a normal greeting is to your species… I don’t know why I even bothered.” It was true. He didn’t know why he tried to be so nice to this human. In retrospect, it hadn’t been a good idea. He couldn’t let himself get close to her or it would be much more difficult to turn her and the others in to his leaders.

“Don’t thank me,” Terra went on. “It’s… it’s the right thing to do. Human or not, you’re still a person. A life that matters.”

He stared at her in surprise at those words. Her kindness seemed to go beyond mere sympathy for him. She actually thought his life had value. He ran a hand through his hair in frustration, his mind reeling. Why was this human so different from what his commander had described? She was making it increasingly difficult for him to see her as an enemy. He almost wished she had been more aggressive so he would know what to expect from her. Her gentle nature was torture to him in its own way.

“Your teammates, they… um…” Terra spoke up again, averting her gaze as if the information was hard for her to share. Jaxil felt his heartbeat quicken slightly at her nervous behavior. Had something bad happened to his comrades? To Peiylo? He suddenly felt dizzy at the thought of the humans killing Peiylo for helping him escape. She had done so much for him. He couldn’t bear the thought of her suffering in his place. He held his breath as he waited for Terra to tell him the fate of his platoon.

“They haven’t been interrogated yet,” Terra finished, sending a wave of relief over Jaxil. “It’s been put on hold. Cassie managed to convince Ryan to wait until they’ve looked for you and have fortified the caves.” She met his gaze. “They’re alive. And knowing Cassie and Serix, they’ll continue to work to make sure it stays that way.”

“I’m glad they’re okay,” he sighed. He didn’t know what he would have done if his platoon had been killed. He didn’t have the skills to survive on his own. Their deaths would have been the catalyst that caused his own. He nodded curtly at Terra. “Thank you for telling me.” He glanced out the entrance of the cavern at the river below. The human had said this was a safe hiding place, but for how long? Eventually, the others would think to search for him up here, wouldn’t they? He didn’t like the idea of getting caught with his back against a wall.

“Are you sure I’ll be safe here?” he inquired, looking back at her. “This cave is only hidden because of the slick boulders. If someone is bold enough to wander up here like you did, I’ll be trapped.”

When Jaxil questioned the safety of this hiding place, Terra looked about the area in thought. He was right. After all, she had been brave enough to come up here, or really it was the fear of being attacked if she turned her back to leave the river area that brought her up here. But still, if given reason, the others might do the same thing. She frowned slightly as she ran these thoughts through her head, looking to him in concern, "Well...I...I can't be 100% sure, I don't think any place in the caves would be completely safe for you. But, I can honestly say this is your best chance."

She didn't know what would come of this. She couldn't hide him forever. They would have to figure out something sooner or later, someway to get him out of here without being spotted, "I'll do what I can to keep them from looking here. But I don't think any of them would risk coming up here. Anyone who ever has has almost fell in the river. One time we had to fish one of our guys from the river before he got carried away. It's a pretty known strict rule that under any circumstances we aren't supposed to--"

"Terra! You in here?!"

Terra's eyes went wide and the two teens moved in surprise, causing a little scuffling noise when through the cavern they could hear Jake's voice. They were hidden behind the cave walls but he was bound to check here after hearing the noise they had made. She looked quickly to Jaxil, rising her hands to calm him, speaking in a whisper that only he could hear, "Stay here and stay still." With that, she was moving, going toward the thin entrance of the upper river cavern, squeezing her way through,

"Yeah Jake! I'm here!" She came out of the cavern into the lower river cavern, "I was just checking out all the tunnels."

"Terra, what the hell were you doing up there? You know Ryan doesn't want anyone heading up there. The rapids are too rough. You could have slipped and been pulled under. None of us would have ever been able to find you."

Terra gave the older male a sheepish smile, "Yeah, I know. I'm sorry, I just wanted to check everywhere. Just to be sure."

"Just...don't go up there again. We can't loose another person today." He put a comforting arm around her shoulder, much like her brother used to do, and lead her from the river caverns, "Did you find anything?"

Shaking her head, Terra looked to him, "No, I checked all through the lower river caverns and all in the upper river caverns. He's not there."

Jake of course accepted this answer, relaying to her that so far they hadn't found him anywhere and no clues as well. Good, at least they hadn't gotten any leads as to where he might be. Now, she just had to help keep it that way. She could only hope he didn't do anything reckless to ruin that chance and he stayed hidden. She left the river cavern with Jake and back into the main cavern.

Everyone had returned from their searches and had met back in the eating area for dinner. She could tell some of the others were pretty frustrating, especially Ryan, Hunter, and Monty. She listened to them speak among each other about options as she moved to take her place in helping to prepare the food, which was her main job in the caves. As she worked with Victoria and Emily, her eyes drifted to the others, landing on Serix and Cassie. Both stayed from the others, though she could imagine why. After the battle with the Lunairans they both likely felt out of place. Yet, she could see a bit of relief in them at hearing no one had seen any trace of the boy.

She continued to make food and once everyone including herself had eaten, she took to cleaning up, telling Victoria and Emily she had it covered. After all, Victoria needed to go help Ray with the injured still and Emily had her son to care for. Besides, it gave her a chance to place the left over food in a bowl, sneaking it out of the kitchen when she was finished with clean up, heading to her room.

Once there, she paused, glancing over to the other half of her room. Wes's half. The two had shared the room since they were kids and now...it felt so empty. She sat on the edge of the bed, staring over at his side of the room, all his things left just as he like them. It took a long while for her to move over to that side of the room, and she had intended to take his blanket and pillow off of his bed, but....found herself unable to. Instead, she moved to her own bed and grabbed her pillow and blanket, as well as a book. She wrapped the blanket around her as though she were cold, hiding the pillow, bowl of food, and the book beneath it so it was out of sight as she walked. Some of the others saw her in passing, but didn't question how odd it was that she was walking with a blanket wrapped around her, assuming her to either just be very cold or that it was coping thing for her.

Finally, she made it back to the river cavern and, after checking around to make sure no one was there, she moved, heading through the small tunnels and up to the upper level caves, carefully moving along the slick thin ledges, until she made it back to the same spot as before, growing relieved to see he was still there. And when he looked in fear, she rose a hand, "It's me."

With that, she moved carefully forward until she sat in front of him, unwrapping the blanket from her, handing it to him, "It gets cold in here. I also brought a pillow, in case you manage to get to sleep." She lifted up the bowl, "And food. Serix eats our food, so I figured it wouldn't be harmful to you either." After handing him these three items, she was left with just the book in her hands, one entitled 'The Little Prince', though she hesitated, "I...wasn't sure if Lunairans read. But I brought a book just in case, to pass the time here so that you're not just sitting here." She looked at him questioning, "Do...Lunairans know how to read?"

Jaxil nodded solemnly when Terra explained that it was the best place he could use to try to stay hidden. He didn’t like how open the cave was to the river. All it would take was one curious human wandering too far upstream, and he would be discovered. Unfortunately, it would have to do for now. Being unfamiliar with the labyrinth of tunnels, he didn’t have any better ideas.

“Terra!” a new voice called from another part of the river. “You in here?”

Jaxil’s eyes widened in terror and he pressed his back against the wall of rock behind him. In his panic, he slipped on the wet floor of the crevice and sent a small flurry of rocks down into the water. There would be no hiding the sound they made. He looked around, hurriedly trying to find an escape route, but Terra held her hands up in a calming gesture.

“Stay here and stay still,” she whispered.

He shook his head slowly in agreement, watching as she slipped out of the cave to confront the source of the voice. He crept forward, just enough to listen to them speak without being within their range of sight.

“…I’m here!” he heard Terra shout as she scrambled down the boulders. “I was just checking out all the tunnels.”

“Terra, what the hell were you doing up there?” the other person replied. By the low timbre of the voice, Jaxil decided it was a male. He couldn’t tell anything else about the stranger though. The male human went on: “You know Ryan doesn’t want anyone heading up there. The rapids are too rough. You could have slipped and been pulled under. None of us would have ever been able to find you.”

“Yeah, I know. I’m sorry, I just wanted to check everywhere. Just to be sure.”

“Just… don’t go up there again. We can’t lose another person today,” there was a brief pause before the male asked: “Did you find anything?”

Jaxil held his breath, leaning as far forward as he could. This was the moment of truth. Would Terra betray him to her own people or would she protect him from them? He braced himself, ready to bolt if he needed to. However, his fears were laid to rest when she answered: “No, I checked all through the lower river caverns and all in the upper river caverns. He’s not there.”

He let out the breath he had been holding in a long exhale. She had chosen to hide him after all. Her lie had bought him some time as well. As long as the other humans believed that she hadn’t found him in the upper cavern, they would have no reason to look for him here. He could rest easy for now.

Suddenly, exhaustion struck him at full force. He hadn’t thought about it before, but he had had a busy day. From commencing the raid on the humans, to getting imprisoned, to escaping from the cell, to his encounter with Terra, he hadn’t had a single moment to rest. He sank to a sitting position with his back against the wall once more, his eyelids drooping heavily. He wanted to stay awake to keep watch for humans, but his tired body protested. He yawned. It wouldn’t hurt to sleep for a short while, right? After all, Terra had misled the others to keep them away from him. Surely that would give him enough time for a nap.

With that thought in mind, Jaxil let himself lay down on the damp stone floor of the crevice. He drifted off, too weary to care about the wetness that seeped into his clothing. At that moment, all he wanted was to sleep.



Time passed slowly by as Serix searched the compound for Jaxil. The missing Lunairan had left no signs of his presence anywhere. He hoped Ryan wasn’t having better luck on his end. It would be a problem if the other humans got ahold of the young male before he and Cassie did. There was always a chance they could convince Ryan to spare Jaxil, but after that battle he doubted the human leader would let him off the hook so easily.

His mind wandered back to the events in the hold. So much had happened that it was a bit overwhelming. He was shaken up by just encountering others of his own kind after being integrated amongst the humans for so long. To learn that he had hurt Celuria and been disowned by his people on top of that was tough to deal with. He wondered if the Lunairan prisoners would even be willing to cooperate with him if he tried to save them from death. They all seemed to hate him for betraying the higher powers. He sighed. If they only knew how twisted their leaders had become, they would understand why he had chosen to fight for the half-bloods. Unfortunately, they didn’t seem very willing to listen.

Serix looked up to see Quincy and Ray approaching from one of the tunnels. The former raised his hand in the typical human greeting, “Any luck?”

“No,” he shook his head.

“Same here,” Ray said. “Anyway, we just wanted to let you know that dinner is ready.”

“Thanks,” Serix said, turning to Cassie as the two males walked away. “We should take a break. I want to find out if anyone else has found Jaxil yet.”

They headed after Quincy and Ray, making their way to the dining cavern. There was already a large group seated at a table—the search parties Ryan had organized to find their runaway prisoner. Serix and Cassie quickly piled food onto their plates and chose a table nearby so they could listen to the others discuss their findings. Serix was relieved to hear that none of the others had had any luck. The young soldier was safe for now.

He ate his dinner slowly, taking time to hear out Ryan’s next plans.

“Seal off the main exit first,” the half-blood leader was saying. “That’s how the aliens got in the first time, so that’s probably the first route he’ll try. We can’t let him escape and report to his leaders.”

“Monty and I can do that,” Hunter volunteered gruffly.

Ryan nodded at the male and turned to the others, “Everyone else, fan out and block off all the other tunnels we know about. Gunner, come with me to search for any possible unmarked tunnels. We need to put this place under complete lockdown.”

“You got it,” Gunner whistled to his dog, summoning the creature to his side. “If there are any more passages big enough to fit a man, we’ll be sure to find them.”

“Alright,” Ryan said, rising to his feet. “Let’s get to work.” He and the others tossed their trash and gave their dishes to Victoria and Emily to be washed. They spread out in small groups of two or three to complete the tasks Ryan had distributed, each group heading into a different tunnel.

Serix watched them with a frown. He wasn’t sure how he felt about Ryan’s move to seal off the caverns. On one hand, it would have been bad if Jaxil escaped and reported to the higher powers, but on the other hand, he would suffer terribly if he was caught. Serix just hoped the young Lunairan had found somewhere safe to hide until this mess was sorted out.

“If none of the others have been able to find him, I don’t think we will either,” he said to Cassie, popping the last bit of food into his mouth and chewing thoughtfully. “I think we should call it a day and get some rest. How about you?”



Jaxil slept soundly in spite of his situation. His slumber was filled with pleasant dreams in which he was a young child again, safe with his parents back on the ship. There was no war, no battles to be fought, no death or destruction. There was simply peace. It was a glorious utopia in which the higher powers had successfully eradicated the human race, and his people were preparing to land on Earth and make it their new home. Everything was how it was supposed to be…

His eyes fluttered open as the faint sound of shifting rocks awoke him. Someone was outside. He sat up quickly, dully noting how soaked his clothes were from lying on the wet floor, and stared intently at the opening in the cave. Was it Terra? Or had the other humans found his hiding place? He tensed, waiting for the intruder to reveal him or herself.

“It’s me,” Jaxil relaxed at the sound of Terra’s friendly voice. She crawled into the cave and sat in front of him, offering him various items. First, there was a pillow and blanket for him to sleep with. He appreciated them after taking a wet nap on the stony ground. Next, she held out a bowl of delicious smelling food, which he accepted and began to devour ravenously. Having not been able to eat since the early morning, he was starving. Last, she held out a book, which he eyed curiously. It was one he had never seen before, which wasn’t that surprising since the only books Lunairans kept were historical documents. He doubted Terra would have been able to get ahold of one on her own.

“I… wasn’t sure if Lunairans read,” she explained bashfully. “But I brought a book just in case, to pass the time here so that you’re not just sitting here.” She hesitated a moment before asking, “Do… Lunairans know how to read?”

“Yes,” Jaxil answered. “But it’s never been my favorite activity.” He examined the book curiously. “Learning about history wasn’t something I particularly enjoyed in my classes. Do humans study for fun?”

Hearing that no one else had found the boy was a relief to Cassie. As she got her food with Serix, she listened in on everything that the others were saying. Ryan spoke about sealing off the main exit, to which Hunter and Monty volunteered on the job. Ryan assigned Gunner to help with unmarked tunnels, Gunner whistling for Dash who came along obediently. Seeing Gunner looking for unmarked passages with his dog worried her slightly. If the lad was still in the caves, what if the dog sniffed him out? She could only hope the boy managed to find a really good hiding spot if he was still in the caves.

Everyone headed off and she turned her gaze to Serix as he spoke, suggesting that they take the rest of the day to rest. He had a point. If no one had found him yet, they probably wouldn't. It would likely take the need for food or water to bring the boy out of his hiding spot, and hopefully by then they would have figured something out to make sure Ryan didn't kill the boy for escaping. She gave a small nod to Serix's suggestion and stood up to give her and Serix's tray to Terra.

She noticed Terra watching both she and Serix, though Cassie didn't feel any malicious intent in the look. Perhaps the girl was just wary, and after the girl's loss of her brother, she didn't blame her for keeping an eye on things. Yet, looking to the girl, she realized that the look didn't seem quite wary either. More of observant.

She gave a smile to the girl, hoping to cheer the girl up a little after all that had happened today, then turned to Serix, taking his hand and took his hand, "Let's go get some rest. I think it's been a long day for everyone." Making their way back to their room, she sighed and sat on the edge of the bed, looking over to him, "What are we going to do, Serix? They won't look for the boy forever. We've got to think of something to stop those interrogations from happening."



“Yes,” Came Jaxil's answer to her question, “But it’s never been my favorite activity.” He looked at the book she had handed him, though didn't seem too pleased with the idea of reading, “Learning about history wasn’t something I particularly enjoyed in my classes. Do humans study for fun?”

She looked at him curiously at that answer. So then...Lunairans only read to learn? Sure, it was okay to read to learn, it was her own way of learning things since they didn't have school in the caves. But that wasn't why she read, "Well," She began, taking the book back into her grasp, giving a shrug, "We do read history, though it's not always for fun. It's important to know the things of the past, so that we can make a better future. But, history isn't all we read." She looked to him, giving him a smile, "Humans create stories and write them down for others to read. Stories to entertain, but also to teach lessons. Reading these stories is my favorite thing to do."

Opening the book, she moved to where he sat and sat down beside him to show him the pages, being careful to hopefully not worry him and give him his personal space as well. They had all sorts of colorful and interesting pictures pertaining to the story, "My brother used to go on raids for supplies, and he would always bring me back a book. There aren't any other humans close to my age here in the caves to spend time with, so reading was sort of my way of keeping myself busy."

Turning to the first page in the book, she smiled. She loved bringing stories to life and when Sally and Charlie were younger she used to read to the two, making the stories come to life she read, putting emotion in her tone as she read the words off of the page. Looking over to Jaxil with another smile, she spoke, "This book is one of my favorites. It's called 'The Little Prince'. Here, listen," She looked down to the pages and began to read, her eyes bright as the story began,

"Once upon a time there was a little prince who lived on a planet scarcely bigger than himself and who had need for a friend.” She began her story, reading the book to him, the tale spinning as the words left her lips, speaking about an aviator crashing in the desert, who met a little boy. A little prince from a different planet with no way to return home. The two spent time in the desert, and while the aviator attempted to fix his plane, the little boy told the aviator tales of his travel, as well as his home planet, where a rose waited for him. A rose that he was in love with and needed to return back to.

"The thorns of a rose--what use are they?" Came the voice of the little prince one day.

I did not know. At that moment I was very busy trying to unscrew a bolt that had got stuck in my engine. I was very much worried, for it was becoming clear to me that the breakdown of my plane was extremely serious. And I had so little drinking-water left that I had to fear for the worst.

"The thorns--what use are they?"

The little prince never let go of a question, once he had asked it. As for me, I was upset over that bolt. And I answered with the first thing that came into my head:

"The thorns are of no use at all. Flowers have thorns just for spite!"

There was a moment of complete silence. Then the little prince flashed back at me, with a kind of resentfulness:

"I don't believe you! Flowers are weak creatures. They are naïve. They reassure themselves as best they can. They believe that their thorns are terrible weapons . . ."

"I am too busy to speak of such silly matters. You actually believe the that the flowers--"

"You talk just like the grown-ups!" That made me a little ashamed. But he went on, relentlessly: "You mix everything up together... You confuse everything..." He was really very angry. He tossed his golden curls in the breeze.

"I know a planet where there is a certain red-faced gentleman. He has never smelled a flower. He has never looked at a star. He has never loved any one. He has never done anything in his life but add up figures. And all day he says over and over, just like you: 'I am too busy to speak of such silly matters' And that makes him swell up with undeserved pride.

The little prince was now white with rage, "The flowers have been growing thorns for millions of years. For millions of years the sheep have been eating them just the same. And is it not silly to try to understand why the flowers go to so much trouble to grow thorns which are never of any use to them? Is the warfare between the sheep and the flowers not important? Is this not of more consequence than a fat red-faced gentleman's sums? And if I know--I, myself--one flower which is unique in the world, which grows nowhere but on my planet, but which one little sheep can destroy in a single bite some morning, without even noticing what he is doing-Oh! You think that is not important!"

His face turned from white to red in frustration as he continued, "If some one loves a flower, of which just one single blossom grows in all the millions and millions of stars, it is enough to make him happy just to look at the stars. He can say to himself, 'Somewhere, my flower is there...' But if the sheep eats the flower, in one moment all his stars will be darkened . . . And you think that is not important!"

He could not say anything more. His words were choked by sobbing.

The night had fallen. I had let my tools drop from my hands. Of what matter now was my hammer, my bolt, or thirst, or death? On one star, one planet, my planet, the Earth, there was a little prince to be comforted. I took him in my arms, and rocked him. It was then that he tearfully began to tell me the story of the little rose that still waited upon his planet, his first and only love..."

She stopped the story for now, though it was not over. Perhaps it was leaving it on a cliff hanger, the story only half way through, but it was getting rather late by now and there was no way she could finish the story tonight. Taking the bookmark within the book, she placed it on the page and closed the book, looking to him, "You should get some sleep and I should return to my own room. It's getting late."

Serix walked back to the room with Cassie in contemplative silence. With all of the entrances to the compound being sealed off, it would only be a matter of time before the runaway prisoner was found. He would need to come out for food or water eventually, and when he did, the humans would be waiting. He didn’t know what they planned to do with Jaxil, but it couldn’t be good. Ryan hadn’t shown him mercy during his interrogation, and he hadn’t even hurt anyone. The young Lunairan would likely face death if he got caught before Ryan had a chance to cool down.

Serix rounded a corner, heading down the corridor that led to his and Cassie’s room. Then there was the matter of the other captives. Cassie had been able to stall her friend for now, but once the entrances were sealed, there would be nothing stopping him from interrogating the Lunairans in the hold. Most, if not all of them, would probably be killed. He wondered if there was anything that could be done to stop the massacre. Ryan wasn’t in his right mind after Sally’s murder. If he wasn’t willing to see reason, they might as well begin preparing nine more funerals.

He sat down on the bed next to his mate, leaning tiredly against her shoulder. She met his gaze and, seeming to read his mind, asked: “What are we going to do, Serix? They won’t look for the boy forever. We’ve got to think of something to stop those interrogations from happening.”

“I don’t know what to do,” he shook his head hopelessly. “It’s going to take a lot to change Ryan’s mind.” He laid down on the bed, wrapping one hand around Cassie’s waist to drag her down beside him. When they were both lying down, her back to his chest, he slipped his arm across her side in an embrace. He closed his eyes, taking comfort in her presence—her warmth, the smell of her hair, the softness of her skin. He began to relax. “We’ll figure something out. Besides, if anyone can get through Ryan’s thick skull, it’s you.” He buried his head against her neck, planting a quick kiss. “As much as I dislike it… you should spend some time with him. He’s grieving. He needs someone to help him cope with his loss, and I think you’re the perfect person for the job.”

He strongly disliked the thought of his mate getting close to the other male—hated it, even—but he couldn’t think of any other choice. If they were going to save the other Lunairans, someone would have to talk to Ryan. For their sakes, he would have to lay down his pride and let the exchange happen.



Jaxil knit his brow as Terra explained the many functions of books in human society. As hard as he tried to remain impartial, he couldn’t help the pique of interest he felt when she said books were used for entertainment. It was fascinating that the humans used writing to tell stories instead of telepathy. Perhaps they didn’t share the mental ability with Lunairans, even though they looked so visibly similar? He wanted to ask, but he was afraid of giving away information that she might be able to use against him or his people. Instead he sat quietly, eating the food she had brought him—it was surprisingly delicious—and listening to her explain why she liked to read.

He examined Terra’s face curiously. She was so open with him about her past. He had only just met her earlier that day, but she had already told him about her life in the tunnels, her brother, and the age groups that existed among the humans. She really wasn’t afraid of him at all. Should I be unafraid of her as well? He wondered. She definitely seemed harmless enough, but she was still a human and his commander had told him not to trust her kind. He had to remember the words of his leaders, even though she seemed innocent.

“This book is one of my favorites,” Terra said fondly, opening the book to its beginning. “It’s called The Little Prince. Here, listen.”

Much to Jaxil’s surprise, she began to read to him out loud. Her voice lilted melodically as she told the tale of a prince from another planet who had fallen in love with something called a ‘rose’—by the description in the book, it appeared to be a plant of some sort—and a pilot who had crashed his ship. It was an odd tale with many words and phrases the Lunairan didn’t understand, but he enjoyed listening to Terra’s soothing voice as she read nonetheless.

Jaxil stifled a yawn. While he liked listening to the book, her voice was also making him tired. He fought to keep awake, refusing to let himself be disgraced by falling asleep in front of a human. His commander would never forgive him for such a mistake. He sat up straighter against the wall and read along over Terra’s shoulder, his luminescent eyes reflecting purple across the white pages of the book.

He was relieved when she finally stopped reading and told him she was leaving for the night so they could both rest. Nodding wearily, he watched her put the book down and prepare to go, “I think so too.” He hesitated, shifting his weight, and went on in a quiet voice, “Also… thanks for not killing me.” He blinked in the darkness of the cave. Was it wrong to have shown gratitude to a human? He wasn’t sure. His exhaustion was making his brain fuzzy. Even if it was wrong, he doubted he would be reprimanded too severely for saying it. There were worse things than thanking an enemy. “Thanks for the supplies too.”

As Serix lead her down to lay in the bed, Cassie laid down with him, curling up close to him as he took her in his embrace. Even though everything seemed to be going wrong, being in his arms seemed to help a lot. She took a deep breath, nuzzling her head against his neck as he spoke. He didn't know what to do either, but he was right. If anyone could talk to him and talk him out of killing the Lunairans, it was her. She just...had to figure out a way to do that. She sighed softly and rested against him, though his next words had her sit up a little and look down at him with a bit of surprise in her expression. He wanted her to spend time with Ryan? That was something that she had never expected him to say, him always being so protective over her around other males.

Serix was putting others feelings and needs, even those of someone he didn't necessarily like, above his own feelings and wants. It was actually really selfless and left a soft smile on Cassie's face as she leaned over to kiss him, "You truly are an amazing man, Serix. I'm proud of you, you know. Putting another, even someone you hate, above your own feelings." She nuzzled her forehead against his, "I never thought I could love you more than I already did, yet I think you just proved me wrong."

With that, she laid down with him again, snuggling close to him, "We'll figure out something, Serix. I promise you, I won't let Ryan do any more harm than he already has."



Terra prepared to leave, gathering her book in her arms as she stood up, looking over to him as he spoke. He was thanking her for not killing him, as well as for the supplies. He looked so tired, about ready to fall asleep. He must have been keeping himself awake because she was here. She suddenly felt bad for keeping him awake with her story. She had just been trying to cheer him up a little, get his mind off of everything that had been happening. Yet now such a thing felt silly. He probably hadn't even wanted to hear a story, just being polite since she had been helping him.

She smiled softly to him and gave a small nod, "You're welcome." With that, she turned, heading carefully back down the slippery slope and to the part of the river are where there was more room to walk and the river was less dangerous. Once back to safety, she made her way quickly back toward her room to get some rest. She paused upon entering her room. She had given Jaxil her blanket and pillow. Looking over to her brother's bed, she slowly moved over to it and crawled into the bed.

She used to do this often when she was a little girl. Crawl into her brother's bed when he was away on raids. Or even when he was there, when she would have nightmares or just want to be near him, she would crawl into his bed and cuddle up to him. The memories of it had tears beginning to form in her eyes, rolling down her cheeks, a soft sob escaping her as she buried her face in his pillow. It was so difficult to believe that her brother was gone, never coming back. She stayed that way, crying in to her brother's pillow until exhaustion took her, leaving her to fall asleep.

The next morning, she went about her normal routine, getting up earlier than most of the others to go to the dining area and begin fixing breakfast for everyone. As soon as the food was done, everyone was making their way in, getting their fill before their own chores were to start. Ryan was giving out different jobs for the day, most of it having to do with fortifying the caves, while others were simply working in the fields. She took note that he skipped her when giving orders. Perhaps giving her time to herself after yesterday's events, which she was thankful for.

After breakfast, she did the same as the night before, gathering food into a bowl and quickly and quietly making her way to the river. She had to be more careful since it was the middle of the day, but once she was absolutely sure that no one had followed her and that there was no one by the river, she made her way up the dangerous river caverns, all the way back to Jaxil's hiding spot, smiling when she saw the glow of his eyes in the caves, "Morning." Making her way up to him, she sat in front of him and handed him the bowl of food, "Breakfast. Made it myself."

She glanced over to where the pillow and the blanket lay, glancing back over to him, "Did you get some sleep? I know it's not the most comfortable, but hopefully the pillow and blanket helped?"

Serix shrugged when Cassie showered him with praise putting the other Lunairans’ safety before his own competitiveness with Ryan. “I try sometimes, you know,” he teased, kissing her on the cheek. When she said she loved him even more, he smiled, “Now you know how I feel every day that I’m with you. I love you so much, Cassie.” He wrapped her in an embrace, yawning tiredly as she cuddled up next to him. It had been a long day, and he was ready to sleep it off.

“Mhm,” he murmured in response to her final words. “I’m sure you’ll make him see reason.” His eyelids drooped as his body was tugged ever closer towards unconsciousness. “We can talk more tomorrow… Can’t stay awake.” He yawned again. “Goodnight, Cassie.”

--

The next morning, Serix woke up feeling like he could have used a bit more sleep. After the fight against his own kind and his disturbing conversation with Celuria in the hold, he could have passed out for a week. However, there wasn’t time for that. With Ryan angrier than ever at Lunairans, he needed to stay on the human’s good side, and that meant working hard and keeping under the radar.

He got dressed quickly and headed to the dining cavern with Cassie, where they joined Sarah, Jerry, and Tori for breakfast. Their conversations were mostly about uninteresting small talk, such as the condition of the crops or what needed to be harvested soon. It was obvious to Serix that they were avoiding the topic of the Lunairan prisoners because of his presence. He guessed the half-bloods didn’t want to share their opinions in front of him because they knew what he would say: His people didn’t deserve to die. They deserved to have the chance to learn the truth about humans and decide for themselves who to side with in this war. Even though he knew the others probably didn’t share his view, he hoped they would come around in time.

After everyone finished eating, Ryan handed out job assignments. Serix held his breath as the human leader moved down the line, slowly approaching him. Half of him feared that the male would take out his anger by not giving him something to do. He had worked hard to prove his loyalty to the humans, but Ryan was so emotionally volatile that one wrong look could turn him against him.

Ryan stopped in front of Serix, his blue eyes meeting the Luniaran’s luminescent purple. There was pain on the light-haired male’s face—different than anything Serix had seen in him before. He was obviously still distraught over the loss of his younger sibling. Serix averted his gaze, uncomfortably aware of how his appearance might have been pouring salt into the human’s wound.

“You, go with Jake and Monty to fortify the caves.”

Serix looked up in surprise, but Ryan turned away to continue giving out orders to the others. He let out the breath he had been holding, relieved that the male had chosen not to take his anger out on him for once. He leaned down to whisper in Cassie’s ear as he moved to join Jake and Monty, who were standing off to the side, “That was unexpectedly painless. I’ll see you as soon as I can… Good luck with Ryan.” He planted a swift kiss on her forehead and trotted over to the waiting males. Once all three were together, they headed towards one of the nearby tunnels to begin their work.



Jaxil waited until he was sure Terra was gone before he finally let himself relax. He sighed, collapsing tiredly on the stony floor of the cave and draping the blanket she had given over his body. He wondered what had become of the other member of his platoon. Had the humans killed them yet, or were they still being held prisoner? He shuddered, shoving away a mental image of his brethren—of Peiylo—dead in that room full of cells. He didn’t know what he would do if something happened to them.

I wish I had some way to know if they’re still alive, He buried his head beneath the blanket, squeezing his eyes shut. Suddenly, he froze. It was faint, but he could feel a presence worming its way into his mind. His heart began beating faster. It had to be one of his platoon members! His commander had said humans weren’t capable of telepathy. Feeling weak with relief, he allowed the presence to reach him.

...Jaxil?

Peiylo! You’re okay! I’m so glad.

Me too, but where are you? You must still be close by if I can reach you. Did you not escape?

I did, but… I didn’t get far. Don’t worry. I’m alright. I’m just trapped in a cavern with a river.

So, the humans haven’t found you?

Jaxil hesitated, Well… one of them did, but she’s a bit strange. She had the opportunity to kill me, but instead she’s helping me hide.

Really? How curious. Please be careful, Jaxil. We can’t trust these humans.

I know. I haven’t told her anything about our mission or our people, and I’m not going to.

Good. I’m glad I was able to contact you.

Me too.

I’m too tired to keep this link open… I just wanted to make sure you were alive and let you know that the rest of us are still fine as well.

Thanks, Peiylo. Keep me updated, okay? I don’t think I’ll be able to leave this sot for a while.

I will. Good luck, and goodnight, Jaxil.

As Peiylo cut off the connection between their minds, Jaxil felt the weight of his exhaustion bear down on him with full force. He yawned and nestled into his makeshift bed, allowing sleep to take him now that he knew his platoon was okay.

--

The constant darkness of the cave made it difficult for Jaxil to tell what time it was when he finally awoke from his slumber. He blinked tiredly, torn between the desire to let himself get a little more sleep and the knowledge that it was too dangerous to risk getting caught by a human while unconscious. He sat up, sore muscles protesting, and leaned against the wall of the cave, stretching his limbs.

He was just starting to ponder whether he should check and see if he could leave the cavern, when he heard the sound of someone climbing the boulders outside his hiding spot. He tensed, watching the opening, until he saw that it was just Terra. She had returned with more food for him. Again, he was struck by the unexpectedness of her behavior. She wasn’t anything like the humans he had imagined. He allowed himself to let his guard down, just a little bit.

“Did you get some sleep?” the female asked. “I know it’s not the most comfortable, but hopefully the pillow and blanket helped?”

“I’m quite well rested,” Jaxil nodded in response, sniffing at the food she had brought to him. It smelled just as good as the meal he had eaten yesterday, and that hadn’t killed him. He gave it a taste and, finding it satisfactory, dug into the food with fervor. He finished it quickly and set the bowl down.

“Are you sure your people won’t notice the missing rations?” he asked, finding himself suddenly curious as to how Terra was managing to sneak food to him. “Surely someone will see you taking more than your share, won’t they?”