23. Chapter 23

Chapter 23

Come fly with me.

I skipped beside Fyn as he led me to the port. I recognized it because this was where I first came to Tamkolvanloknol. The wide open space had several sleek silver shuttles, and drakcol in black uniforms darted around doing something important, I was sure.

It took me all of one second to find who we were searching for because there were no shuttles or people around them. Seth stood beside Kal with an arm around his trim waist. Serlotminden was gesturing to the shuttle behind him, beaming. The shuttle, while gleaming silver like most of the others on the lot, looked different. It was smaller and had a sharp nose and slim wings.

“Zoltilvoxfyn,” Kal called when he caught sight of us, or rather, his brother.

My Sunshine returned the greeting, tail wiggling in what I believed was agitation. I rested my hand on his lower back before sliding up his spine, over one shoulder, and down his side.

He relaxed under my non-existent touch, which made my heart soar.

Serlotminden rushed to the side of the shuttle as he called, “Let’s go.”

We all clambered aboard. There wasn’t much room inside. Two seats were at the front of the craft, and Serlotminden slid into one. The stool, I guessed was the way to describe it, didn’t have a back, but it did have arms as well as buckles. The drakcol needed space for their wings, I supposed.

Kal directed Seth to the two other seats, leaving the co-pilot seat for Fyn. Sunshine glanced at me. There was no place for me, but I could hardly hold it against Serlotminden. I was a ghost. He couldn’t see me. Hell, he probably didn’t think I sat down.

“I’m fine,” I told him before Fyn said something.

“You’re not,” he replied. Seth glanced at us, but Fyn ignored him.

“I don’t need to sit down. Like I don’t even feel my legs. I can’t even get tired. Trust me, I’m fine. All fine. No issue. The ship won’t even vibrate me or throw me around. I’m dead, Sunshine. It’s all good.”

He jerked back like I struck him. We liked to pretend I was actually here, but I wasn’t. I motioned for him to sit in the remaining seat with a bright smile, refusing to allow his reaction or our reality to bother me.

Serlotminden glanced over his shoulder as he flicked several switches and jiggled a yoke. “Is there a problem?”

“No,” Fyn said before sitting down.

I stood behind him. “It’s fine, Sunshine.” I bent to place a non-existent kiss on his head. “I’m fine.”

When he didn’t react, I stroked the point of his ear, making him shiver. I smirked and kept brushing the sensitive spot until he was wiggling. While I enjoyed the thought of Fyn getting aroused in front of everyone, staking my claim on him publicly, I stopped. I wasn’t sure if that was something he liked.

The sleek craft slowly lifted off the ground. Before long, we were whizzing over the trees and steep mountains of Tamkolvanloknol. I peered over Fyn’s shoulder at the deep canyon. The walls were sheer, and I didn’t see much of the bottom from our angle, but I did catch sight of the sandy ground.

“We’re not leaving the planet, right?” Fyn asked.

“Of course not,” Serlotminden replied. “I know I can’t take you away.”

Why couldn’t Fyn leave? Kal had. Serlotminden did. Their other brother Dontilvynsan certainly did. I wasn’t sure about whether the eldest Hal or his mate Gil left or not. Why would Fyn have to remain planetside?

A silence hung in the air, and I peeked back at Kal who had his arms crossed, and Seth who looked as confused as I was.

“What’s going on?” I asked.

Fyn replied, “My parents don’t allow me to leave Tamkolvanloknol.”

“Why?” Seth asked.

“How can they stop you?” I asked at almost the same moment.

“Caleb,” Fyn said after relating what I said to the group, “my parents can keep me here because I’m in the first phase of adulthood until I’m mated. And Seth, they keep me here, in part, because of my inner fire. It is exceedingly rare. And for other reasons.”

I stroked his hair, wondering if his depression was one of the reasons they kept him close.

“It’s unfair,” Kal commented, and Serlotminden gripped the controls, making me think he agreed with Kal.

“You’re not an adult?” I asked.

“I am in both body and mind. In my culture, though, drakcol have two phases of adulthood. The first we enter at fifteen when we are fully grown. While in the first phase, our parents or government-appointed guardian control certain aspects of our lives, like large decisions regarding finance and where we live. I can manage my day-to-day money, but I can’t purchase something significant without their approval. I can live anywhere on Tamkolvanloknol, but to leave, I would need their approval. It is the same if I were to seek the Crystal for a mate or reaffirm the bond. I don’t become a full-fledged adult until I’m mated.”

“It confused me as well,” Seth said, looking in my general direction. “Kal is now a full-fledged adult. It’s weird.”

“From what I understand of human biology,” Kal said, “us being fifteen is the equivalent to humans at twenty-five. When we are fifteen, physically and neurologically, we are fully grown.”

“Ah,” I replied, but I didn’t exactly understand. Did drakcol age faster than we did or was their planet’s rotation slower? But why was mating integral to being an adult?

“Family and children are important to drakcol,” Serlotminden supplied, like he’d heard the questions rattling inside of me. “Mates are very special in our culture. It is said you cannot know yourself until you know your other half.”

“That’s not exactly fair to people who have no desire for romance or long-term relationships,” I commented.

“Yes,” Fyn said. “There has been pressure on the Cohort to change our governing laws regarding it. The laws have relaxed from what they used to be. In the past, we couldn’t do anything without our parents' permission.”

“Cohort?” I asked.

Seth said, “It’s their ruling body, like England’s parliament, though not exactly. The royals here are more than figureheads. From what I understand, one-third of the seats are inherited, and two-thirds are elected. The Chief of the Cohort, who’s like the Prime Minister, has to be elected.”

“Ah,” I said shortly.

The silence continued as we drifted through the sky. I hadn’t intended to make it awkward with my questions, but I wanted to know everything, especially if it affected Fyn.

“How about I show you how fast my ship can go?” Serlotminden asked, and the ship jolted forward, driving everyone but me backward.

Seth gasped, and Kal snapped, “Be careful.”

“Where is my trouble-making pest?” Serlotminden asked, casting a roguish smirk over his shoulder. The sleek shuttle went even faster, dipping into the canyon and weaving around the rough rock formations. The sleek shuttle zipped through spaces that didn’t seem possible and moved at dizzying speeds.

I grinned so wide I swear a distant ache in my cheeks started, even if that wasn’t possible. I held Fyn’s shoulder as he shifted to lean into the curves. Kal kept growling, and Seth held his hand, but he was smiling.

Serlotminden shot up into the sky, the sun momentarily blinding me, before tilting the shuttle into a spiraling nosedive. The treetops filled the entire front window as we plummeted to the ground. A scream built in my chest, even though if we crashed, it wouldn’t harm me. At the last moment, he jerked back on the yoke and we shot to the sky.

Seth laughed, and I joined him. Kal tried to examine Seth, but the G-force kept him in his place. Fyn glanced at me, and at my grin, he flicked his tail in my direction before facing forward.

“Wasn’t that fun?” Serlotminden asked.

“You might have harmed Seth,” Kal snapped, trembling. He looked frightened, but somehow, I didn’t think his fear was for Seth, because my dude appeared completely fine.

Unbuckling, Serlotminden turned around and stared directly at Kal. “I would never endanger your mate, Pest.”

Kal frowned, a dim light growing under his scales. Seth slipped out of his buckles. “Breathe, Babe.”

Serlotminden glanced at Fyn, tail flicking.

Fyn asked, “Are you well, Pest?”

“I’m fine,” he replied. Seth cupped Kal’s cheeks, thumb smoothing the tension, as he stared intently at him. Once again, I was struck with the notion that they were having a conversation—that mind-speak thing. If Seth and Kal could, maybe we could. I mean, if I was alive and we'd been bound by the Crystal (I wasn’t a hundred percent sure how it worked). God, I would like that. Fyn would probably get annoyed with my every random question. Though, I guessed, it wasn’t that different than we had now; no one heard me when I spoke to him.

“I’m right here,” Seth repeated over and over again, and the light began to dim beneath his scales.

“What’s going on, Pest?” Serlotminden asked, but Kal didn’t reply.

Sliding out of his seat, Fyn rested a hand on Kal’s knee, tail wrapping securely around his brother’s ankle. “Is this about your crash?”

“Crash?” I asked.

He replied, “Kalvoxrencol was in a severe shuttle crash over two cycles ago.”

“By the Crystal, Pest, I did not think,” Serlotminden said, reaching for his little brother, but there was no space for him in the cramped shuttle to do more than touch him.

Kal knocked them off and hauled Seth onto his lap, cradling him. Seth wrapped his arms around Kal’s neck, and Kal rocked his husband as he breathed slowly.

“Was Kal hurt in his accident?” I asked.

Fyn shook his head but didn’t respond. He probably didn’t want to risk upsetting Kal more. I didn’t ask another question, and instead, dragged my fingers along Fyn’s back, soothing him as he watched his younger brother.

After Kal calmed down, returning Seth to his stool, and several minutes of Serlotminden flying smoothly over the treetops, Seth said, “That was fun.”

“I’m glad you enjoyed it,” Serlotminden replied, without even a hint of a smile.

“Is your name really Serlotminden?” Seth asked.

“Yes,” he replied. “Why?”

“He’s about to shorten your name,” Kal warned.

“What?” Serlotminden asked.

“A nickname,” Seth said.

“A what?” Serlotminden asked.

The word nickname must not have translated well. It was difficult for me to know what a drakcol would or wouldn’t understand because Seth always spoke in English and they always spoke in Drakconese. Around Fyn, I spoke in Drakconese, and English when I was alone. If I had a brain still, I was pretty sure I would always have a headache from the back and forth.

“An endearment, of a sort,” Kal explained. “Humans do it. He already is calling Hallonnixmin Hal and Dontilvynsan Don.”

“And don’t forget Monqilcolnen is Monty,” Seth said.

“I call Zoltilvoxfyn Fyn,” I supplied, and with a moment of hesitation, Zoltilvoxfyn told them what I said.

“Well, now I’m feeling left out,” Serlotminden said, lips pursing in an obvious pout.

“Can I call you Mindy?” Seth asked.

Serlotminden tried the nickname out a few times before he said, “I like it.”

“Good. Mindy,” Seth said.

Without warning, Mindy pulled Seth into a hug, drawing a panicked squeak from my fellow human. “Another little brother,” Mindy said. “I like it, and you're so cute and soft. I could squeeze you all the time.”

“Let my mate go,” Kal ordered, tail flicking.

Mindy did, but not before patting Seth on the head. Seth rolled his eyes at Kal, who bristled around his brother; though, Seth was a tad paler than normal.

Fyn and Kal were equally overprotective.

I brushed my fingers over Fyn’s cheek, commenting, “You and your brothers are very similar.”

“I suppose.”

“You are, and I like it.” It reminded me of my brothers and cousins. The good-natured ribbing. Jokes. Laughter. I missed them.

“They are yours now too. If you want them.”

“I do.” I ran my fingers along his forehead. I hadn’t realized how lonely I was wandering space for years, completely alone, until now, when I finally wasn’t.

“They’re yours, then.”