“Not hungry,” I reply automatically, already trying to think of reasons why Kyth’s khui would have died overnight. Was it nicked when it was put into him? Too sickly? Or is there not enough “juice” in the khui that was chosen?
I’rec doesn’t release me, though. Instead, he leans over me, whispering in my ear, and his tail goes around my waist. “You willeat.” And he nips my ear to take the sting out of his command. “My mate needs her strength if she’s going to tend to all her humans.”
“Bossy jerk.” But I’m smiling. “Fine, give me something to eat so you’ll get your loincloth out of a bunch.”
“It is not bunched,” he tells me. “And we have meat from last night. Let us put some over the fire and feed our new clan.”
A short time later, everyone is more or less fed, I’ve checked over Kyth (who seems to be fine except for the fact that his eyes are no longer glowing with khui-brightness), and I’rec leads a small group out to go hunting for more khuis. With all the meat that’s been brought in, there’s a few disgusting pelts at the far end of camp that need to be scraped and worked, and with everyone clothed and fed, now’s as good a time as any to break them in gently to the life here. So I grab one of the pelts—this one a hopper hide—and sit down near the fire to scrape it.
“What are you doing with that?” Dawn asks. She wrinkles her nose.
“Scraping it clean of gunk so it can be made into leather,” I say, making sure to scrape in exaggerated motions so they can see what I’m doing. “Everything gets used, and this will be good for clothing once it’s processed. It ends up very soft.”
“There’s no civilization here?” someone else asks, and they sound terribly disappointed.
“There is not. We live in a little village on the beach, in a protected cove. There’s another village deep in the mountains in a canyon, but it’s a lot colder there. I prefer the beach.”
“You mean it gets even colder?” Another person, and a fresh note of despair. Do I point out that this is the much milder bitter season and it’s actually kind of pleasant right now? Nah. One awful tidbit at a time.
“It’s going to be all right, everyone,” the cheery one says again. Sabrina. She’s adorable, all rounded curves and bright blonde hair, and a face that seems made for smiling. I like her positive attitude. “If we were in a more civilized place, someone would find out we were clones, right? And no one is supposed to know. So it’s best that we’re here somewhere isolated.” She beams at me. “And Flor seems to be happy here.”
“That’s because her pussy got pounded into next week,” comments Colleen.
Several of the girls giggle, but this is the break in conversation that I need. I’ll keep them focused on the good stuff about their new life and not on the terrible parts. “Yup. It’s all part of the resonance package,” I say proudly. “You get scared at first because it means you’re being tied to someone else for the rest of your life, but in reality it’s just your pussy getting eaten for hours on end by a guy that worships you.”
Sabrina sighs dreamily. “Where do I sign up?”
“You’ve got a khui. It’ll let you know,” I say. “Give it time.”
Colleen speaks up again, a worried expression on her face. “Are all the aliens like I’rec? Are they all, uh,giving? Like that?”
“Women have been a rare commodity for them for a very long time,” I explain. “I have yet to meet an alien that doesn’t absolutely lose his mind over his woman.”
Sabrina nudges Jason. “You’re going to have some big shoes to fill.”
The human man scowls. “You make it sound like I can’t lick pussy for hours just because I’m human. Trust me. A human guy knows how to please a woman, too.”
Yasmin snorts and tosses her long, dark hair. “Not according to my last boyfriend.” She pauses, confused. “At least, I think I had a boyfriend. I can’t remember his name though.”
“Clones, remember?” Colleen comments. “Those memories might not be yours.”
“Are you saying I might be a virgin?” Yasmin asks, an aghast expression on her face.
“I would be happy to help you with that,” Skarr says, speaking up for the first time. He gives Yasmin an intense stare, and she doesn’t answer.
“Okay now,” I say, unsure if Yasmin is welcoming Skarr’s attention or not. “Women are allowed to discuss sex without men propositioning them, all right?”
“I am not propositioning,” Skarr says, getting to his feet. He looks much better now that he has a khui inside him, his limbs no longer sluggish. “I am simply letting her know I would be glad to assist with any learning needs.”
“Uh, that’s exactly what a proposition is, my dude,” Colleen retorts. “I’m not sure what planet you’re from.”
“I am not certain either,” Skarr replies, distracted. He turns and gestures in the distance. “And someone is coming.”
The hunters? Are they back already? Unless they found a den full of snow-cats or an entire herd of dvisti right on our doorstep, it seems soon for them to return. I get to my feet, peering at the distance—and see one lumpy figure. After a moment, I realize it’s one person carrying another. Oh no. An injury? I wipe my hands on the hem of my tunic, knowing I’m going to regret that later, and hand my scraper to Dawn, who sits nearest to me. “Be right back.”
My heart thuds anxiously as I head away from the fire, towards the distant figures. Skarr moves into place a few steps behind me, as if I might need reinforcements. But I know everyone on this planet. I know everyone at Icehome village and I know everyone at Croatoan. There’s no need for protection. If someone’s heading to our camp carrying a person on their back, it’s most likely an injury.
For a moment, I worry that it’s my I’rec, and thatsukobhas struck. That we’re unlucky after all.