1. Keldor

I pacednear the edge of my territory, taking in the sights and sounds around me. The feral planet of Reazus Prime was a brutal place to live. If not for my keen senses, I would have succumbed to the dangers present long ago.

I pulled my wings tighter around me as the winds picked up. Storm season was almost upon us. It was time to head back to my lair before the storms made traveling difficult. The last thing I wanted was to be caught out in the storms when they hit.

I turned to make my way back when something out of place caught my eye. An escape pod hidden beneath some brush should not be on my land. I looked around, searching for any signs of others. When no others were apparent, I approached cautiously, wondering what I would find inside. Rumors abounded of human females being discovered on Reazus Prime.

My nearest neighbor, Devkon, had found a human some months back. A feisty little human who had shot me with a point thing, she called an arrow. I still bore the scar from the incident in my wing. Even so, I admired her spirit. She was a good match for Devkon. While we had never been friends, I had an enormous amount of respect for the [look to see if I gave his race a name].

It was difficult to know how long ago the pod had crashed on Reazus Prime. Vining plants grew fast in this area of the planet, hiding the pod by climbing over the top. I scanned around the area, seeking any signs of life or anything else out of place. When I sensed no one, I crouched beside the pod to inspect it more closely. A large dent marred the side of the pod. The door was sealed shut. Whatever or whoever was inside must have been trapped in there for some time. They were most likely dead, but I still had to check. It was my responsibility as the guardian of this land to ensure nothing untoward was happening within my territory.

The control panel refused to leave stasis mode and remained frozen and unresponsive. Even as I attempted to circumvent the programming, the pod beeped. At first, the sound was a steady rhythm. Then the noise became irregular, speeding up into a frantic pace. Even as my fingers pushed at the flashing lights, the pod shuddered as if taking a last breath.

My claws came out as I sliced through the metal, opening the door of the pod. It wasn”t my smartest move, but I no longer had a choice. Inside, a female lay unconscious. Her skin was pale, too pale. As her chest rose, her breaths remained shallow. Her pulse was weak, but still steady. She had lost a lot of blood. Wounds decorated the female”s head and arms, blood staining the cloth covering other body parts. The pod”s emergency medical programming must have failed to engage.

Without further thought, I scooped the female up in my arms. This was not the place to heal her. My lair was closer than the Hub. There, I could protect her while she healed. It would also give me time to determine what I should do with her. She was an unknown, and I did not deal well with unknowns. That my first thought was to bring her to my lair already showed how desperate I was to help her. I was curious about her. That was something new for me. I never let curiosity get the better of me. Curiosity often led to trouble, and I avoided trouble.

My wings spread out, the air ruffling the edges. It had been a while since I”d flown. The hole Devkon”s mate graced me with had been slow to heal in the thin webbing. Despite the circumstances, the feel of the air as I flapped my wings and caught a pocket of air felt good. My webbing stretched, caressing the invisible molecules as my wings moved and gained lift. It felt freeing to be flying again.

As I flew to my lair, I couldn”t help but steal glances at the female in my arms. Her hair was a strange color, the light reflecting off it showing hints of different colors. The strands were so light, I barely detected the iridescent colors. It was a shade akin to the flowers that grew in my land, except her hair had many more colors in it. It reminded me of a rainbow.

Her skin was pale, and the sight of her made me wish I had gone to the Hub instead. I had no experience with healing females, even those of my kind. There was a healer at the Hub who might help her. The coming storms made it too dangerous to fly back. It wasn”t a good time to be in the air. The Hub wasn”t a safe place for humans, anyway. Too many beings wanted to claim the rare females since they were universal breeders.

When I landed at my lair, I carried the female into my home. I didn”t even know if she would survive the trip. I laid her on the med bed, then set to work. The machine cleaned and closed the wounds. The bioscan showed more injuries, a broken arm, a slight fracture to her head, some internal injuries. As the machine cataloged each wound, the screen displayed more about the female”s anatomy. The wounds disappeared as the skin knit together.

The machine had been an impulse purchase some months back. I”d had some vague thought of gifting it to Devkon for his mate. The female was adventurous and Devkon had his claws full with that one. However, Devkon had not needed the gift, having purchased a medbed of his own.

It was not until the machine finished tending to her injuries that I realized I had done more than I ever would for anyone else. I had brought her into my home, something I had sworn I would never do. My home was my sanctuary, a place where I could be myself, free from the eyes of those who sought to challenge me for my lands and my secrets. Bringing a female here was dangerous for me. Yet the thought of leaving the female to the elements and the worst that Reazus Prime offered left me unsettled.

I watched the female as the machine completed its programming. She was beautiful. Everything I was not. My people had a reputation for their strength and ferocity. We were fierce warriors, feared by many. I did not think of myself in that manner anymore. I had not fought in a long time, not since I carved out my place on this wretched planet. I had learned to live a quiet life, keeping to myself. I had been content with my life.

That contentment shattered the moment I spied the escape pod. Now, I was unsure of what my next move should be. I was in uncharted territory. I did not know how to handle females. Especially delicate females from distant planets. Leaving the female to die was not an option. Or even worse, to be found by another being on the planet. Reazus Prime was filled with males who would do anything for a female. Females were rare here. The females that had been sent to Reazus Prime when it was a prison planet were of a different breed, more than capable of taking care of themselves in the harsh environment.

I wasn”t sure why I cared, yet I did. It was not in my nature to care about others. Perhaps I was going stir crazy living on this planet. The thought had me chuckling. I had lived on this planet since my youth. Living on this desolate planet had changed me, made me ruthless. It was a part of me now.

The female stirred, and I had not yet figured out what I was going to do with her. I had a feeling that I could no more leave her on the planet”s surface than I could allow her to go to the Hub. There was something about her that called to me. I did not understand it, yet I resisting the pull to be near her was not an option. I hunched my shoulders as I wondered what I had gotten myself into.

The female”s eyes fluttered open, and she gasped. I moved to her side, and she flinched away from me, fear in her gaze. ”Whoa, stay back. You have sharp claws.” She winced as she spoke, her voice raspy, as if it had been a long time since she”d used it.

”Be still,” I said, my voice sounding harsher than I intended. ”You are safe.”

The female”s eyes widened at the sound of my voice, and she shrank back, her body trembling. I cursed myself for frightening her, for forgetting how alien I must seem to her human eyes.

”I will not harm you,” I said, gentling my tone. ”I found you in a damaged escape pod on my land. You were injured, so I brought you here to heal.”

She stared at me, her eyes searching my face as if trying to determine the truth of my words. ”Where am I?” she asked, her voice hoarse and barely above a whisper.

”You are on Reazus Prime,” I replied. ”A planet far from your homeworld.”

Her brow furrowed, and she shook her head slightly. ”Reazus Prime? I don”t... I don”t understand.”

Confusion and fear warred in her eyes, and a part of me ached to comfort her. I knew such gestures would likely only frighten her further. ”What do you remember?” I asked, keeping my voice low and even.

She closed her eyes, her face scrunching up in concentration. ”I... I don”t know. Everything is so hazy, like a dream I can”t quite grasp.”

I chuckled at her words. ”I suppose that is true. You are safe in my home. The door is locked and will not open without my permission. No one knows how to find me. You are miles away from the nearest settlement.”

”Is that a good thing?”

”Believe me when I say that it is. My nearest neighbor is to the south of us. He and his mate don”t visit often. Only when their esapug finds himself on my land. Then Devkon finds himself on my land because his mate has chased down the wretched creature. I have learned to forgive him for the transgression, since I would do the same if I had a mate of my own.”

”You said I”m on Reazus Prime? Where is that?”

”That is in a galaxy far, far from your homeworld, I”m afraid.”

”You mean like on another planet? How is that possible? That means you... you”re an alien!”

I chuckled in amusement. ”Technically, I believe you are the alien on Reazus Prime. Though I must admit that I was not born here either. I was brought here when I was a youth. Exiled for political reasons, I had no control over.” A shadow of memories attempted to weigh me down, but I threw it off. I had long since given up the hope of ever returning to my homeworld.

”So, I”m not on Earth? I don”t even know what to think about that. What do I call you? You have a name, don”t you?”

”Yes, female, I have a name. I am called Keldor Blazeclaw. I am a Dragonian,” I said, bowing my head at the female, winking at her. To all the deities I no longer worshiped, I winked at the female!

The female giggled and the indignity of winking at her was worth the unusual display. ”And what is your name, female?”

The female opened her mouth to speak, but no sound came out as horror grew in her expression. She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath and opened her mouth again. And again, no sound came out. Her mouth popped open as she gasped.

”I don”t know.” The female tugged her hair, her eyebrows squeezed together in confusion. ”How can I not know my name?”