Chapter 13

- Bronwen -

I move an inch closer to him, so that we're thigh to thigh. "I tell you. But not now. Look! The stars are beautiful."

"Which one do you come from?"

I pick one at random and point. "That one."

He looks up. "Which one?"

I lean into him and point at another one of the millions of stars above us. "That."

His hand cups my shoulder, and he pulls me a half-inch closer. "That one?"

"No. Look." I point again, my head on his shoulder. "That one. Beside the other one"

"Ah. Beside the other one. Right. Such a nice star to come from. It's the same color as your hair. You have starlight hair, Bronwen."

It's a cheesy thing to say, but this is from a guy who's never seen a single television show or movie. He just made up that line and he delivered it as if it's an obvious truth. So I can just enjoy that pleasant feeling of being genuinely flattered

"You have starlight eyes," I reply. "But they more light than stars."

The drums are still beating, but that part of the village is on the other side of the Mount and it doesn't bother me. It just creates this perfect otherworldly and primal atmosphere, along with the crackling fire and the complex smells from the jungle.

I'm sitting in a cave with a caveman, looking at an alien sky. It's so unreal I can't totally believe it. But I'll absolutely take it.

"Maybe you have starlight eyes, too," Noker says. "Look up."

I lean my head back. "All right."

He looks into my eyes from close up. "I knew it. There are the stars, right in your eyes."

His fingertips touch my chin lightly and continue along my cheek, feeling warm.

I close my eyes, wanting to focus on his touch. "Mmm."

"There are so many stars," he goes on. "Maybe we shall go to all of them. And in the end, we will find the one that we want and settle there for the rest of eternity."

"Nice," I mumble, excitement rising in me.

"We Foundlings think we came from the stars as well," he rumbles softly, fingers getting close to my hairline. "And we shall return there after we die, leaving our bodies behind. We will be free of them at last."

"M-hm."

His fingers slide through my hair to the nape of my neck, their touch so light and warm and tingly that a shudder goes through me.

This time, he knows that me trembling like that is a good thing, so he doesn't stop. "But we can go to the stars before that. We will build one of those flyen sosrs that Piper told Brak about. We can go to your star and to any star we want." His fingers go up through my hair and caress the crown of my head, sending the most incredible tingles all through me. If I had my eyes open, I'm sure I would be able to see the blue flashes of the electric sparks that he must be making up there.

I slowly adjust my position, and Noker gets it. With gentle, strong movements, he arranges us so I'm sitting in front of him, leaning back on his chest and facing the cave opening.

"Mmmm," I sigh with pleasure as I lean back and Noker places his wondrous fingers on my forearms.

"When we get to the stars," he goes on, making little circles on my skin, "we will greet them as Foundlings. Each one is a Foundling who once lived. We will talk to them and hear their wisdom. I will show you to them, and they will say ‘that is a wonderful woman the stars sent to you, brother'."

He moves his fingers across my sweatshirt up to my chest, lightly cupping the breasts outside of the worn fabric.

"Yesss," I manage as harder tingles shoot down my center. "Go on."

"We will stay on the star for a while, living in its jungle and hunting strange star creatures." He starts circling the nipple outside the fabric, sending a shiver down my spine. "Perhaps we shall go to a star with an ocean and see its water creatures."

"They may be scary," I breathe, sensing his hardness twitch behind me. "You must bring your spear."

"I will bring my spear," he coos, taking the lower hem of my sweatshirt between his fingers and starting to lift it, slowly so I have a chance to stop him.

But stopping this is the last thing I want. I've had a day full of contests and battles and fearing for my life. I need this now, something completely opposite from the desperation of both today and the years in the dank tunnels. "Good."

"But I won't need it. For in the stars, everyone fears us. Because there, we are the Bigs!" He pulls the front of my sweater up, exposing my breasts to the night air. I help by raising my body so the fabric can slide up under my back, too.

"What else do we do there?"

"We do this," he says and strokes both my breasts with those warm, tingly fingertips.

The nipples contract so hard it makes me gasp. But at the same time, this is too slow. I want it faster. So I quickly straighten and help Noker take off my sweatshirt. I use the opportunity to open the first button in my jeans, before I lean back again. It has to be enough of a hint.

He gets it right away, Stroking one breast, his other hand slides down my front, leaving a lingering trail of warm, soothing tingles until his fingers stroke up against the thick edge of the fabric.

The sheer expectation makes a thrill run through me. That touch feels very special, and already the sensory overload is starting.

"We'll step off the stars and go to the moon Yrf," he goes on, voice even more gravelly than usual, "where we'll walk in the blue jungle and explore the terrain."

The fingers dive into uncharted territory where my skin is extra soft and sensitive.

My breath is going shallow from anticipation. "And then?"

The zipper in my jeans follows his fingertips lower until they encounter the upper edge of the panties that were the first garment I made from Bryar's stock of caveman fabric. There's no elastic, just a drawstring carefully tied in a knot.

Noker is not deterred. He simply slides his finger lower over the fabric. "Then we explore the low hills and the—" his voice catches in his throat and the fingers stop. "... and the small valleys there."

"Oh…" I can't help the moan. This is going in the best possible direction.

"They are soft valleys," Noker goes on, his voice downright gruff, "soft and very warm…" His fingers tap on some very sensitive parts of me that are also pretty highly strung right now.

But all this clothing is starting to annoy me. I unceremoniously pull my jeans off and toss them further into the cave and slide the panties down to my knees. The coolness of the night air makes me feel extremely bare.

Noker's breath goes shallow, too. This is his first time with a naked woman, after all. It makes me feel even better — I'm not the only one who's barely in control right now.

His fingers are on my bare skin, warm and soothing, creating a cascade of tingles as he keeps making his little circles, exploring each spot except the most needy one.

"We'll explore the plains," he murmurs close to my ears, making the hairs stand up on my arms as his fingers keep circling. "And the woods." They swing towards the center, going through some 'foliage' that has been trimmed with a crude scissor, but not much more.

The fire crackles beside us, and the alien stars twinkle in the sky outside my cave. The sounds of slow, steady tribal drumming echo softly from the jungle. I can't help but notice that each muted boom coincides with his moves on my body. Two booms, one circle. Three booms, one stroke across a nipple.

"You're doing it on purpose," I rasp as I lean back, close my eyes, and relax into his touch. This is the wildest thing I've ever done, and I love it.

Noker's fingers explore the skin around my sex carefully, setting off tingles like little sparklers, moving closer and closer until I'm involuntarily thrusting my hips into the air, my whole body tensing up with the anticipation.

"Then we go into the valley," he murmurs and lets one warm, tingly finger slide up one fleshy lip.

I buck and moan. "Yesss…"

"There's a river at the bottom of it," he goes on as he dips one finger into me, making a wet squelch. "And we will follow it."

More fingers join, and I lose track of what he does. All I know is that my center feels like it's about to erupt. I clench the dinosaur skin we're sitting on with both hands, having to hold onto something. I'm sure there must be sparks of current running up and down my sex, building to something really special.

His fingers touch and stroke, caress and tease, making shockingly wet noises the whole time. His narration goes on, but I have no idea where we are in the story. I'm so ready, I'm trembling.

"...finally we get to a small peak," he growls. "And there… we stay." His half-dinosaur fingers circle right in the most sensitive spot and stay there, his touch feather light but insistent. And warm, so incredibly warm and tingly…

It's like setting a sparkler to a keg of dry gunpowder. A wave of bliss shoots through my center and then just increases in strength as he keeps up the circling with one hand and then squeezes my boobs with the other, exactly in rhythm with the drums outside.

I groan and buck and shake, losing track of time and space.

Noker stirs under me, bringing me back to the world. "That was fun. It is possible to Worship a woman with only fingers, then."

"M-hm," I reply, only half present and feeling wonderfully relaxed. "You learned well."

Noker arranges us so I'm lying on top of him. I can't ignore the great hardness at his middle.

"I'll take care of you too," I mutter as I lay my head on his chest. "I'll just rest for a moment…"

- - -

I wake up and find myself alone and the cave brightly lit with alien sunshine.

Well, maybe it's just as well if we don't go to get breakfast together. The rumor mill would go crazy. Or at least crazier than it is now.

As usual, I make my way up to the plateau. Korr'ax and Bryar have made sure that we girls don't have to start the day being stared at by the tribesmen at the common table down on the ground, and boys from the tribe carry food up the stairs.

"Looks like another sunny day," Alba says when we sit down to eat. "And you're looking like the cat that got the cream. Or is it milk? I forget. Damn, is that even an expression? Or did I just make it up?"

"Ever see a cat on Xren?" I ask as I grab a wooden ladle and scoop some piping hot mystery stew from a pot and heap it onto my plate. "Or milk?"

"I thought it was your project to find something that makes milk," Astrid says. "For your bakery."

"The search continues," I tell them as I blow on the stew. "But I'm going to be picky about the milk. And about the eggs, although those should be easier to find. You must admit it would have been pretty great to wake up to the smell of fresh croissants. Or just newly baked bread. Let's see now… An artisanal loaf featuring a golden-brown crust that crackles with every slice," I make up, "giving way to a soft and airy interior. Generously packed with a blend of crushed nuts from the mysterious jungles of planet Xren, each bite offers a satisfying crunch and a rich nutty flavor."

Alba tosses a fruit pit at me. "Can someone shut this girl up?! Now I'm craving freaking bread, but there isn't a loaf for light years around!"

I grin. I'm in a really good mood today, ready for anything. "Perfect for toasting or enjoying on its own, this bread pairs beautifully with creamy butter, gourmet cheeses, or a drizzle of honey. Ideal for breakfast, brunch, or an afternoon snack, Alba's Nutty Dream is a wholesome, flavorful addition to any meal."

Alba groans.

Astrid takes a sip of water. "It would be nice to get something like that; I'm not arguing. But who would get up at three in the morning to bake?"

"I would," I tell her. "Every day. You couldn't pry me away from my rolling pin with six wild raptors."

"And if I had seven?" Alba asks.

"Then I would have to question your commitment to the pastry cause. Sorry, girls. I'm not quite awake yet."

"You'd have to bake for the whole village," Astrid says. "Because this arrangement here, where they bring our special breakfast up to this penthouse every day… it probably shouldn't continue much longer."

"It does feel a little weird," Alba admits. "It's like we're a special group of VIPs who need their breakfast brought to them, while everyone else eats at the common table like plebs. It can't endear us to these guys, sitting up here all high and mighty."

"Nobody's complaining so far," I point out. "But I know what you mean. Bryar always has all her meals at the common table. Both here and in the Tretter tribe."

Astrid picks up a fruit slice. "If you're going to bake bread for the whole tribe, that means hundreds of loaves. And can you imagine when someone has a birthday? Which would be just about every day in a tribe this big?"

I chuckle. "If we actually get to a point where baking birthday cakes becomes too annoying a chore, then I'd say we've pretty much made it here. But I'll do my best to maybe make it happen. I'll be going to Noker's clan to see his camp today. He knows a bunch of interesting plants that might be useful. We mostly need a wheat substitute."

"They have nuts," Alba says, "like you just cruelly pointed out with your fictional bread. Grind them into powder and dry it, and you'd have a kind of flour. More or less."

"I'm willing to try anything," I assure the girls. "Meanwhile, Astrid, are you going to become the new shaman?"

"I don't know," she sighs. "There's a lot of nonsense going on with their beliefs. I'm not sure I want to deal with it."

"Might be a good help to us," Alba says, squinting out at the jungle. "If one of us tunnel girls had a real job in the tribe. I think there's some serious prestige in being a shaman."

"That would be the only reason I might do it. We kind of need to raise our status a little. Not having to rely only on Bryar's good graces. Hi, Piper!"

"Hey, girls." Piper comes up on the plateau, carrying her bow. And behind her…

"Hey, Bryar," I call out. "Long time no see!"

"Yeah," Bryar says as she climbs the final steps. "Hi, girls. Everything okay with you? We've been walking all night."

I get up to hug her. "We're fine. Did you see the signal?"

Bryar plops down on the bench, looking tired. "Did we ever! Red flashes all over the place. Some of the Tretter guys thought it was some kind of attack. But I guessed it was from up here, and that it meant something big had happened. Sorry we weren't here! I mean, I'm just as happy I didn't see that swarm. But Korr'ax is frustrated about not having been here."

"I don't think there was much he could have done," I assure her. "Except that game of penk may not have happened in the first place, and so we wouldn't have had advance warning about the swarm. We will never know."

She looks at me with tired eyes. "Penk? What the hell is that?"

We bring her up to date on the events of the village, and then I announce my plan to see Noker's camp. "I'll help them move their stuff, and at the same time I'll check the jungle for plants that might become flour or sugar or whatever."

"Nice," Bryar says, hiding a yawn. "I met Noker downstairs just now. That head is something else, huh?"

"It's an organ for seeing infrared," I tell her. "Or something like that. Helps him see in the dark."

She raises her eyebrows. "Cool. I had no idea he had that ability."

I shrug. "He wasn't sure himself, I think. It must be that dinosaur part of him. But nobody knows which dinosaur."

"Those Foundlings are like superheroes," Alba says. "Isn't there another half-dinosaur guy in their clan? What can he do? Shoot spider webs from his fingers?"

"Imagine that," Piper laughs. "Spiderman is a Foundling. No, Sprisk just has an unusual chin. Never saw him shoot webs."

I get to my feet and stretch. "Anyway, I think we're going today. Noker's a little shy about coming up here. I should see if I can find him."

"Make sure you check your cave," Alba says with a grin. "There's no telling the places he might get to."

My face goes hot. How much did they hear last night? "If he's there, I'll be surprised."

I feel their eyes on my back as I climb down the first flight of stairs. The girls are jumping to conclusions about Noker and me. Sure, he's big and strong and protective. And I do enjoy his company a lot. But I'm not going to picture a future with him, the way Piper and Bryar did with their cavemen. The way things work on Xren, that future could be cut short at any time. In two days the end has come really close, first with the dactyl attack and then with the swarm. I'll never know how poisonous that plant was that I licked, so that's two and a half times I've been close to the end.

Brak and Noker are sitting at the common table when I get down there, along with Korr'ax. I'm struck with how similar they look, while at the same time being completely different. They're all unusually big and strong, even for cavemen. They have the same slow, but agile movements and the alertness in the eyes. As well as the deep voices, of course.

I swear Noker's face lights up when he sees me. He gets to his feet. "Good morning, Bronwen. We should start walking now. It's better to get to the camp in daylight."

The two others give me a friendly greeting.

"Should I bring something?" I ask. "I have my knife and clothes. That all."

"The clan has the things we need," Noker rumbles. "And you won't be gone from here that long."

"Then I think I'm ready."

Noker lifts a big dinosaur skin pack with straps for carrying it on his back. "Chief Korr'ax, thank you for the great hospitality and honor I've been shown here in your tribe. I hope I shall soon return. And I hope that you shall likewise soon be a guest in our humble camp once it's been moved."

They grab each other's wrists in a very caveman-ish handshake, and then Noker does the same with Brak. "Spend some time here in this mighty tribe, brother. I think we shall move the camp in five days."

"Then I shall be there," Brak promises. "It is a very fine campsite Chief Korr'ax has found for us."

I wave to the top of the Mount, seeing movement up there. "Good bye! Back in a couple of days!" I don't think they can hear me, but they know where I'm going.

Both gates open for us, which I think is a sign of respect. I guess these guys like Noker more than he realizes.

Then we're in the jungle, where it's clammy and hot and the air is thick with the smell of rotting leaves, living dinosaurs, and a thousand other things that I don't even want to know.

Noker has his spear in one hand and the pack on his back. I notice he's still wearing the shorts I made for him, and it makes me strangely happy.

We're supposed to be quiet in the jungle, to not attract dangerous predators. Noker walks silently on his bare feet, and I try to not step on dry twigs with my sandals.

I keep an eye out for plants that might be useful, but the only one I know what it looks like is sugarcane, and my last attempt at finding that ended with an icky mouth.

I'm still pretty new to walking for hours in the jungle. During the years in the tunnels, we only went out when we were running low on supplies. And we tried to not get too far away from our safe holes in the ground. To a tunnel girl like me, this feels almost irresponsible — we're visible to everyone and everything that lives in these crazy woods. But I know that Noker can protect me against anything. I catch myself hoping we'll be attacked by some moderately dangerous monster, so I can watch him easily defeat it.

We get to a clucking stream and drink our fill of water.

"Can you see Bigs ahead?" I ask and nod at Noker's head fan.

"I see none ahead," he says. "But I don't think I can see them as well down here as I could up on the Mount. All these trees block the view. Still, it should give us early warning if some predator were to lurk around us."

I try to empty my mind of worries. The worry about never going home to Earth is always there, but it was worse in the tunnels. This life here, above the ground and in a somewhat safe village, makes the need to go home a little less gut-wrenching.

The worry about my future in general is also not as scary. I'm here on Xren, and in all likelihood that future won't be that long. Still, I feel safe with Noker, and he has shown that he's a compulsive protector.

He sometimes stops and looks around, then closes his eyes and rotates on the spot like a radar dish on a ship. Sometimes he turns to the side, as if he senses a danger he wants to walk around. And sometimes he doubles back, probably for the same reason.

He's clearly on top of this, and I really appreciate that he's avoiding dangers, instead of barging into them to show me how good he is with his spear. This makes me feel safer than any skill with his weapon ever could.

We cross many narrow streams until we get to a wide one that continues down a valley in small waterfalls and rapids.

Noker waits for me to catch up, smiling. "We can talk now. The water makes a lot of noise."

It's an idyllic riverbank, covered in tall, soft grass and bordered with white flowers. There's even an opening in the dense canopy of trees over us, so that sunlight sparkles off the water.

I breathe out, glad to take a little rest. "Are we close to the camp?"

"Not far now," he says and looks around. "I don't usually come here, but some of the boys go here to bathe. Not right here, but further down the stream. Brak doesn't like it, because it's dangerous to be this far from the camp. But we haven't lost anyone yet. Not in that way, at least."

I sip some water straight out of the stream. It's as cool and clear and fresh as anyone could wish for. "Did you come here when you were boy?"

"When I was a boy, the camp was far away from where it is now. We only came to this part of the jungle recently. But we had other places like this. Sometimes Sprisk and I would leave the camp for the whole night and spend it in some more exciting place. Brak, too, although he usually went alone. Or with Dexer."

I sit down on a perfectly placed boulder, two thirds into the stream. "Some tribesmen say being Foundling is bad. But sounds like you did fine."

Noker laughs, his head fan taking on a golden tinge. "We didn't know any other way to live. Perhaps life in a tribe would have been better. But we can't change it now. Let's eat something." He takes off his backpack and hands me a handful of dried berries that the Borok tribe uses as a snack because they're really sweet.

I pop them in my mouth and enjoy the sweetness. "Thanks. Maybe could use this to make sugar."

"Chugga? Yes, use it for anything you want."

"If dry it like this, then dry it more until is hard, then turn it to small sand… maybe is like sugar in a cake."

"Chugga in a kek is nice," Noker deadpans. "Or is it? I don't really know what a kek is."

"Oh, it is nice," I assure him. "Some would say is necessary. Sorry, Noker. I'm using alien words. Sugar is sweet thing, but very very sweet. On Earth, we use it to make food better. Cake is a food that is better with sugar."

"Like vas," he says, naming a type of spice the tribe uses to season meat. "It makes food better."

"Like vas," I agree, "but different."

He puts the backpack on again. "We must keep going."

"Is heavy?" I ask as I get down from the boulder. "Looks like many things in there."

He walks on. "The Borok tribe is kind, and gave our clan a lot of food so that we don't have to hunt while moving the camp to a new place."

"They're kind," I agree as I follow. "Korr'ax and Bryar and Sarker'ox, too. What did Korr'ax say about the swarm?"

"He said the same as everyone says."

"What?" I press him. I know he's not one to talk too highly of himself.

"That Brak and I were important to save the tribe. That he was happy you killed the one that was aiming at me, and that he was sad he lost five men."

"Was he surprised about Unin'iz?"

"That Unin'iz died? Not more surprised than about the others. Oh, look. Is this one of those plants you want to taste?" He points at a bush.

I glance at the plant. "I know that bush not taste good."

A bit further down there's a pool where the water flows slower. The bottom is all sand and round rocks, polished by the water.

"This is where the boys bathe," I take a guess.

"It looks like it," Noker says, looking up and down the river. "I've only been here once."

I put my hand into the water. It's cool, but not cold. "Maybe we should bathe, too."

His yellow eyes run up and down me. "Maybe we should."