“That’s no problem,” I replied. “We are not in a hurry.”
The delay actually pleased me to the extent that it would give me more time to properly court my mate.
“Brees says she will not part from me after we leave this place,” Janelle said carefully.
I tensed, bracing for where this was headed. Since discovering she was my soulmate, I’d started looking into Dreija and what kind of life we could build there should she decide to settle on the Creckel planet. Since the Kryptid war, the couple of scientific colonies that had once existed there had never been rebuilt. We would be the only humanoids there.
“She and the others aren’t sure they want to go back to Dreija,” my mate continued in a hesitant voice, choosing her wording carefully.
“Why?” I asked, my fingertips lazily caressing her back.
“They feel they are too different now to breed with the original Creckels. While some of their traits have been enhanced, others have been weakened,” my mate replied with a frown. “And they… hmmm… They liked that fight against the Zebiers.”
I waited for her to continue, but she let the words hang between us. Brushing her hair from her face, I lifted my head to look at her, forcing my mate to slightly roll to the side. I was hoping her mind was headed the same place mine had gone right after that battle.
“It isn’t surprising,” I said in a gentle tone. “Creckels are naturally formidable hunters. Everything about their anatomy seems to have been conceived to make them the ultimate war machines. Your friends have been enhanced for that specific purpose. A civilian life would obviously be more difficult for them.”
The tension in Janelle’s shoulders drained with each of my words. She beamed at me and lifted her hand to caress my cheek.
“You understand. You always understand,” she whispered with something akin to awe.
“You flatter me, but I don’t have much merit in this,” I said, fighting the urge to puff out my chest. “My brothers and I were created the same way, and so was Reklig and his people. The Vanguard has accepted us for who we are, not what others intended us to be. It gave us a chance to become all that we could be and to live proud and free. If the modified Creckels wish to settle on Khepri, I have no doubt something could be arranged.”
Janelle nervously licked her lips, her eyes flicking from side to side as she pondered her next comment.
“They haven’t stated it in so many words,” she amended. “But I believe Brees was testing my response to that possibility. She wants to be like Stran. They all do. They want a place to call home, but they also want to travel, see the world, and fight evil.”
“Stran’s been filling their heads with tales of our missions, hasn’t he?” I asked with a soft chuckle.
“Every night!” she said, rolling her eyes in fake despair. “As you know, Creckels don’t need as much sleep as we do. Once every three or four days suffices for them. So, while they’re standing guard outside, he tells them about his life on Khepri, his epic battles with Doom, and how they are apparently the most unkillable pair in the Vanguard.”
I snorted and shook my head. “As much as it pains me to admit it, Doom is indeed the best warrior among us. But I do enjoy knocking him down a notch or two whenever the opportunity arises,” I said with a fiendish smile.
“I thought you were the most impressive the other day, taking on two Zebiers at once, unlike the others,” my mate stated with a sincerity that had me swelling with pride again. “But my companions aren’t Stran. They do not have years of experience in battle. Their first fight was exciting because Stran played the bait and told them what to do. But Brees says Stran is going home to Dreija to maybe start a new family. They will get slaughtered if…”
“Do not fret, my darling,” I said when her voice trailed off, an almost maternal expression of worry on her delicate features. “If the modified Creckels decide to come to Khepri, we will see that they receive proper training before they’re exposed to danger. We’ve all been a little jealous of Doom’s friendship with Stran. He is the only Creckel left in the Vanguard. When he leaves, there will be no other. Just so you know, after that battle against the Zebiers, Doom and I have discussed how wonderful it would be for them to join our ranks. You should also know that Doom isn’t just our team leader, but also one of the leaders of the Vanguard.”
Normally, it wasn’t so simple to be welcomed into the Vanguard, but we already had a close history with the Creckels. In this instance, Reklig had also scanned their surface thoughts for signs of duplicity or uncontrolled aggression that could put the team or our homeworld in jeopardy. That had almost gotten him spanked by the modified Creckels for the intrusion. As Dragon and Xian Warrior, Doom and I also had the ability to read auras to get a sense of a person’s—in this case of a sentient being’s—moral suitability to join us. And my mate’s companions had passed with flying colors.
“And if they do choose to stay with us, we would be beyond grateful to have someone like you who not only has the most extensive knowledge in the medical care of Creckels but who also fluently speaks their language,” I continued, shamelessly laying down the arguments I’d been working on over the past couple of days to try and sway her to come to Khepri in case I failed to charm her quickly enough.
“I would love that,” she said almost timidly before chewing her bottom lip. “However, the Creckels need space to run and hunt. I would like to be close to them, but not sleep outside,” she added with a nervous laughter. “And I can’t be alone.”
My heart skipped a beat, not only upon hearing those words, but the way she had said them, her gaze boring into mine.
“You won’t be,” I said firmly.
“Because you will live with me?” she insisted.
“Yes,” I responded matter-of-factly.
“Because you want to or because you feel you have to?” she challenged.
I snorted, loving her bluntness and her strength. I had no use for a skittish female or one that made you jump through hoops to figure out what she wanted because she couldn’t speak her mind. Forcing her onto her back, I leaned over her, loving the way her golden hair fanned over my pillow and how vulnerable yet unafraid she looked.
“The only thing I ever do out of obligation are chores,” I said with intensity. “You, Janelle, are many things, but not a chore. I will live with you because there is nowhere else I want to live. You cannot begin to understand how important you are to me.”
Janelle’s eyes widened, and her lips parted in shock before a shy but happy smile stretched her lips.
“You are very important to me, too,” my mate said. She hesitated, licked her lips nervously, then seemed to take a decision. “I know we’ve just met. You saved my life, which makes me eternally grateful. But I feel a bond with you like with none of the others who helped save us. It’s like I’ve always known you. You feel like home. You… You put the sun in my heart.”
The most adorable pink crept on her cheeks upon saying those last words. While it was endearing, her words were what mattered to me. I had wondered how long I should wait before properly courting her to make sure whatever she felt for me was genuine attraction and not just gratitude. Realizing she’d already reflected on the matter filled me with joy and further proved that despite her years in isolation, she had achieved proper mental maturity.