When Artemis replied to him, Azdrei’in stared at her blankly for a moment. He’d never heard his name reduced to just one syllable before, so he didn’t immediately recognize it when she called him ‘Drei’ instead of ‘Azdrei’in.’ He wasn’t sure how he felt about the change. It was a little odd—his people didn’t alter each other’s names when they spoke—but it also wasn’t important enough for him to protest against. Perhaps it was just easier for her to pronounce anyway.

He turned to look at the screen when she showed him another image, a familiar helix of DNA. It was something else he could recognize but didn’t know much about, since he wasn’t a scientist or physician. He wondered if there was a way for her to show the same pictures to the Om’phaers if they asked him to bring her on board the mothership. If he continued learning English, he could translate their conversation, and she could share her wealth of knowledge with Lunvalgans who could make more use of it than he could as someone who specialized in hunting and fighting.

“I cannot tell Zalla what to do,” he warned her, making sure to set realistic expectations. The most he could do was give suggestions, just like he had when he’d told his commander that Artemis was more valuable to their people alive than she was dead. Ultimately, it was up to the other Lunvalgan to make the final call though. It was possible that Zalla would order him to bring Artemis to the ship and then leave her there while he returned to the Earth to continue sweeping the land for threats. However, there was [i]one[/i] way he could think of that would better ensure that his commander wouldn’t separate him from the human if she came to the ship.

“No,” he said when she asked to learn his language. “Not now. You want me to stay with you. If I am the only one who can talk to you, Zalla will have to tell me to stay with you.” He had no qualms with teaching her his native tongue later on. For now, though, it was his only bargaining tool to use if his commander wanted to send him back to her planet. He had to hold onto it at least until after the Om’phaers decided what they wanted to do with her. Until then, it was better for him to be the only one capable of translating for both parties, so his presence would be necessary.

Suddenly, he felt her touch his face, and he tensed reflexively. She’d kept her distance for the most part the day before, so he hadn’t expected her to come this close to him. He turned toward her and met her green eyes as she spoke to him, further surprised that she seemed to be trying to comfort him. He guessed that she believed he was upset about the way his people conducted relationships and wanted something more. Truthfully, he hadn’t given it much thought though.

He’d found some female Lunvalgans attractive and had pursued physical encounters with them while they were still unmated and free to do so. However, he’d never gotten so attached to any of them that he’d say he was in love. In their current society, familial and romantic relationships weren’t as important as an individual’s duty to serve their people as a whole. Some couples did fall in love, while others went about their business clinically and unemotionally. Azdrei’in had always assumed he would fall on the latter end of that spectrum and wasn’t particularly bothered by it. He just didn’t have any expectations that he’d develop feelings for someone else.

“I could,” he assessed, passively observing the interesting flecks of colors in her irises while she was close to him. “But I am happy enough now. I don’t think I need it.”

When Artemis asked if he wanted to go outside, he didn’t hesitate to stand up from his chair. Zalla may have assigned him to keep watch over her, but he still wanted to continue exploring this unfamiliar planet. He also had a secondary duty to eliminate any threats he found, and he couldn’t do that from inside her hideout.

Standing directly in front of the human, he loomed over her because of their glaring height difference. “Yes, we should go outside,” he agreed, then stepped around her to return to his bedroom. “I need to change to one without this,” he explained, trying to tell her by tugging at the sleeve of the borrowed shirt that he preferred to wear a sleeveless top, so his shoulders wouldn’t be restricted if he needed to fight.