8. Krogoth

Chapter 8

Krogoth

Healing

E xcitement builds inside me; it's almost too much to handle. My beautiful Pebbles is finally letting herself go, melting into my arms. Our noses touch so sensitively, so long overdue. Until her wet tongue probes my lips. "Pfft! What are you doing?" My head pulls away in surprise.

"Wha… What do you mean, what am I doing? I thought we were kissing?" Pebbles exclaims as she pulls back, wide eyed.

I wipe my lips with the back of my hand, removing her tongue juices. "We were kissing! Until you started sucking my face and licking my lips." Who would do such a curious thing?

Pebbles exhales loudly, "That is kissing, KROGOTH!" saying my name much louder than the rest of the words. "Rubbing noses is called Eskimo kissing on Earth. But it's not the real thing."

"Humans suck each other's mouth juices as a sign of affection? Very… eh… bold." No wonder why there's so many humans on Earth , such a frisky species.

She steps closer, smiling. "You make it sound so charming, Krogoth." She glances at my lips, then to my eyes, oddly pleasingly. "It's fun though, let me show you." She melts into me again; her eyes and mouth look so inviting.

Eagerly, I wrap her in my arms again, moving my head down to meet hers. I'm now prepared for this ‘human kissing.' I will not falter! She feels so soft and warm, like lying on a new fur on a warm day. The Rush builds as our noses touch. Her soft lips press against mine. I open my lips, letting my tongue slip into her sweet mouth. Our tongues collide beautifully. She feels so wet and intimate. It spurs me on, to probe more greedily as our tongues caress each other. She moans softly, submissively. I can feel my cock becoming engorged. By the Gods, I want this female. If I don't stop now, she'll be in danger.

I pull back, gazing at her, my eyes full of lust. She smiles so sweetly and innocently it nearly drives me to take her right here, right now. "Your way is much better," I say with euphoric laughter.

"I know." She smiles cheekily. "I told you it would be fun." She steps back, running a hand through her attractive wild wavy hair as she looks about the room for a moment. "I saw you training the other two earlier. You know I used to train in Judo."

My mind is still reeling from the stunning kiss. "Judo, is this a wrestling style on Earth?"

"Yeah, kind of." She walks to the center of the wrestling ring, a look of mischief on her face.

I laugh abruptly. "You want to wrestle me, tiny little Pebbles?" I circle to the opposite side of the ring.

"Stop calling me tiny. I'm average size!" she says, putting a hand on her hip.

"Average of tiny is still tiny. Tiny Pebbles." I smirk at her.

"That's it, I'm going to kick your butt!" She charges across the wrestling ring. "Ah!"

She's so cute. Her less than impressive charge assaults me with all the force of a light breeze. She puts one arm around my waist and places one of her feet behind my own. She grunts, huffing, her small muscles straining to force my center of gravity over her outstretched leg. Interesting, she's trying to trip me. "If you want to kick my buttocks, then why are you trying to trip me?"

"It's just a figure of speech!" she grunts. "It's not fair. You're too big," she says, throwing her hands up in defeat. "Wait, hold out your arm. I'm going to try my secret attack."

"Do you expect your opponents on the battlefield to do as you ask?" I question, holding out my arm as instructed.

"If they know what's good for them." She flashes a sneaky smile. "Lower please."

"Any lower and I'll be touching the ground," I retort with a smirk.

"Oh, you'll be touching the ground soon, mister!" She grips onto my outstretched wrist with both her hands like a little clamp. With my arm held over her shoulder, she turns swiftly, positioning her back to me. She pulls forward with all her might. "Hi yah!" Her hips barely reach me because of the size difference. We use this throw too. It is good for turning the opponent's aggression and strength against them… most times.

"You finished?" I laugh. She is just ineffectively pulling on my arm, panting. I take my other hand and slap her across her very attractive posterior.

"Ouch!" She jumps on the spot, instantly letting go of my arm to rub her backside.

"I win." I smile at her. "Your technique is excellent, but the size and strength disadvantage makes the moves ineffective."

"I should have brought a tank," she says, still rubbing her buttocks. "That's going to leave a mark. Probably a giant red hand on my ass now."

Observing Pebbles, her demeanor has changed noticeably after I promised to take her back to Earth. She appears more at ease and playful; it is bittersweet to think what we could have, but I resolve to enjoy my remaining time with her. "I'll kiss it better for you." I make my new kiss face at her.

"Might take you up on that later." She smiles and glances round the room again.

"I look forward to more human kissing practice later, but first, what we need is food." Taking her soft hand in mine, I head for the exit. "I could eat a whole boracks!"

"Aww, please go slowly for once, Krogoth. I feel like I've done a two-hour workout," she says, wincing as she walks.

"Fine. I wanted to show you round the ship earlier, but we got interrupted," I reply, walking so slowly I feel like I'm barely moving. "Near here is the kitchen. Although there's not much cooking required with the lack of warriors aboard."

My pulse quickens as she leans against me as we walk out of the room. "I'd love a big juicy burger right now. With a pile of fries with ketchup, mmm," she says, moaning.

"I don't know what those are, but we have boracks milk and jellied rations." I continue leading the way down the corridor.

Her face twitches almost imperceivably fast. "The milk's nice, but the jelly thing is like chewing a brick." She scrunches her face.

"Nonsense. It'll put hair on your chest." I give her a slight bump with my hips.

"I don't want hairy boobs, thank you." She bumps back.

"My friend might like that," I say with a laugh. "… I can make us something a little more unique to eat, if I get time…before you leave."

Pebbles' face lights up with excitement as she gazes at me. "Oh! Like a date?" she asks eagerly.

"Yes, tomorrow is the date we will eat," I reply, unsure of what she means.

She shakes her head, a smile still lingering on her lips. "No, a date is a human thing where couples do an event together that they will enjoy," she explains.

I scratch my head, puzzled. "That's no different from anytime I'm with you?" I ask, hoping to understand.

"Ah, you're a big sweetheart, Krogoth," she says, squeezing me tighter.

I'm even more confused, but glad I apparently said something to make her happy.

After a short time, we arrive in the kitchen and I bring Pebbles over to the liquid dispenser so I can show her how to use it.

"You see, with your wrist console, you have access now to open doors and use equipment," I say as I hold up my wrist console. "You click here on the dispenser and select what you want." I select the boracks milk. "There's not much choice. It can only produce basics." The device whirrs into motion and after a brief moment, my delicious milk is ready. "Now you try it."

"Ok, I'll get the same as you. It tastes like ice cream." Pebbles punches in the correct buttons and after a quick wait, her milk is also ready. "Damn! This cup is massive." She struggles to lift it out of the dispenser, the mug looking enormous in her tiny hands, yet she still manages to look absurdly cute.

"Over here is the food generator," I say, moving us over to the next machine. "The same controls here, but the food is not great on a war vessel - just the basics. Try picking something."

Pebbles considers each of the food options from the vending window before she punches in the button to bring up the selection of food available. "Hmmm, I'm staying away from the jellied rations. What about this packet here?" She points towards the Zarna nuts.

She's very inquisitive. I like it. My wrist console vibrates. It's a notification to meet with Xandor and Astraxius, causing me to sigh at the interruption. I don't know how much time left I have to enjoy with my Pebbles, but this meeting is important. "Sadly, I must go now." I bring up the ship map on the console for Pebbles. "After you eat, return to our bedroom."I point to the display to show her where our room is.

"Oh, our bedroom, is it? I might have to redecorate in that case," she threatens, looking at the map and smiling to herself.

"Touch nothing," I instruct as I walk towards her, looking into her beautiful hazel eyes. Then I gently kiss her on the forehead. "Goodbye for now, my tiny Pebbles." The thrill of having this stunning woman so close is enhanced by her proximity to me. If only she had agreed to stay with me on Klendathor to complete the Mortakin-Tok. But the Gods had other plans.

"See you, Korgy," she says with a gleam in her eye.

I arrive at the command bridge a short time later to see Xandor waiting patiently, zoning in on the new coordinates routing towards Terminus Exile station.

"Greetings, brother. Astraxius late again?" I say as I move towards the central console.

"Greetings, High Chieftain. You know how he is. Probably tinkering on something," Xandor says as he gives the usual salute.

"Or because he moves as fast as an injured snarlbroc," I say, smiling. "You might have noticed already, but I adjusted our course to Terminus Exile station." I point to the galaxy map.

"This troubles me, Chieftain. That place is swarming with pirates, outlaws, deserters, you name it. If we had more warriors, we could slaughter them. But now…" He finishes by shrugging his shoulders.

"It is a risk. But one we must take. We exhausted most of our Elerium crushing the Seeker Swarm. With our supply nearly depleted and with the damage to the hull, we'll be easy prey if the Scythians attack again," I say, looking him in the eye.

"If it's the only way, so be it… Gods know how they'll react seeing a Scythian battlebarge come into dock," he says, a sly grin forming on his lips.

I furrow my brow, contemplating the potential risks. "Depends which gang is in control, but we need only wait until tomorrow to find out. We'll most likely need to get our hands dirty; we have little to trade."

He chuckles, the sound echoing off the walls. "Ha! It'll be just like the good old days then."

I can't help but smile at the memories that rush back. "I doubt I could drink that much again. Especially during the Proving Pilgrimage. We were drunk for most of it!"

Xandor laughs, a hearty sound that fills the room.

"The universe hasn't recovered from the last time you two were out making a name for yourselves," Astraxius interjects as he shuffles into the room, his eyes crinkling at the corners with amusement.

"At least we could turn up on time, Astraxius," Xandor says, looking mischievously at me.

"Oh, I turn up when I mean to." He glances at the galaxy map. "So we are heading to the Terminus Exile station? Makes sense,"Astraxius says, not waiting for an answer.

"I was hoping you could repair the ship so we could press on to Klendathor. We are only a few days out." Xandor looks at Astraxius with a narrowed expression.

"Xandor, you are a fool. You know so little, you are ignorant of how much of a fool you really are. You expect me to repair fifty tons of thick arcweave plating while we are in a spaceship traveling at hyper light speed? How would we even fabricate so much metal? Even if we had enough Elerium," Astraxius says, glaring bloody murder at Xandor.

Xandor looks down, his face darkens with embarrassment at the rare outburst from Astraxius. The tension in the room is tangible, and I can sense the worry etched on the faces of my closest companions.

Astraxius clears his throat, putting a hand to his mouth. "Ahem," he says, trying to compose himself. "Forgive my outburst. I'm a little on edge. We are so close to fulfilling two hundred years of research, and yet so close to disaster."

I nod in agreement, trying to ease the tension in the room. "Rest easy, Astraxius. We'll find a way back home. We've come this far." I nod to both Xandor and Astraxius, hoping to reassure them.

"Oh, and do you have the same confidence on the Rocks front, Krogoth? Thankfully, she's in fine health, a pleasant young female too. Much better company than you ruffians," he says with a chuckle.

"You're only saying that because she's the first female who would willingly speak to you," Xandor quips.

Astraxius sighs loudly, putting a hand to his forehead. "As opposed to you bashing them on the head and taking them… Gods, I'm letting you bait me," he says, exasperated, while Xandor smiles broadly, showing his fangs.

"I wish I could say it's none of your business, but that wouldn't be completely accurate." I pause, wondering how much to reveal. "No… things aren't going well… I think." I scratch my head, trying to make sense of it all. "I promised to take her back to Earth and then… Well, we kissed and then she challenged me to a fight." I look over at the other two, hoping for some guidance.

I sense Xandor's eyes on me as he speaks, his words cutting through the tension in the room. "Look at him, Astraxius," he says, his laughter ringing out. "Have you ever seen our chieftain so out of his depth? She's messed him up good."

My cheeks begin to color with a tinge of embarrassment caused by his words. "She kissed you after you promised to take her back?" Xandor continues, still chuckling. "She's a tease!"

"Hush, Xandor, this is serious," Astraxius quickly interjects, scowling at this news. "You promised to take her back? After everything we've sacrificed?" he reprimands loudly, rubbing his temples.

A surge of anger courses through my veins. A hot and searing sensation I struggle to contain. "You forget I am your chieftain, Astraxius!" I roar, pounding my chest with a clenched fist. "We lost four of our war brothers already, and Rocks begged me to return her to Earth. A moment of weakness and we would have lost the ship and our lives, and I'll not see her slaughtered when she could live safely back on her home planet," I continue, my gaze locked fiercely with his blue eyes, my own purple eyes blazing with intensity.

Astraxius visibly shrinks before my outburst. "Gods be good, Krogoth… All she needs is more time for the bonding to take root." He moves closer to me, clutching his hand around my wrist. I can feel the warmth of his palm, and his touch is surprisingly comforting. "I know you feel for losing the four young warriors. But you know as well as I… they aren't like us… They only live for death and battle." He finishes his sentence, his voice barely a whisper.

I rub my chin thoughtfully. "There is still time. Maybe she'll change her mind before we repair the ship." Relief floods through me at Astraxius's words. Maybe there is hope yet for Pebbles and me.

Astraxius sighs deeply. "Have faith, Krogoth." He clears his throat before continuing. "About her challenging you to a fight, though… Humans aren't known for having trial by combat before determining mating quality, but maybe her tribe is different? Curious, I'll need to consult my data again to look for references." He makes some notes in his console as he taps his foot.

"I don't know about all that, Astraxius, but by the sounds of it, Krogoth, things are good with Rocks. Reminds me of this one time I was chatting to this Tuskarian female at a bar in the Dominus system. Think her name was Waterfall, or was it Pitfall? Ah, I can't remember! Anyway, she challenged me to an arm wrestle. Damn female was strong as a Mutalisk. Both of us were huffing and puffing, sweat pooling around us. Half the bar had bets on who would win. It was crazy. So my Rush kicks in at the last minute and I finally pin her arm to the table. The bar goes wild! And what does she do right after? Grabs me by the hand, pulls me upstairs and starts ripping my clothes off. I'll be honest; there was a lot more huffing and puffing when it was all said and done…" Xandor finishes with a deep breath, looking between Astraxius and myself, nodding mindlessly at this familiar tale.

"I stopped listening at ‘Tuskarian female',"Astraxius says, still playing with his wrist console.

"It is a fine story, Xandor. It gives me hope." I smile at my friend, grateful for his unwavering support. "When we arrive at the station, Xandor, a few of the war brothers and I will disembark and secure repairs and Elerium for the ship." I look at Xandor who nods in return. "The rest of the war brothers will stay and guard the ship. Astraxius, please keep an eye on Rocks. She has tried sneaking off once, and I can't risk it again."

"It'll be my pleasure. But with such few warriors onboard, repelling a gang attack will be very difficult," Astraxius cautions, crossing his arms.

"Hopefully, they won't know how few we really are," I say, my eyes flickering between Xandor and Astraxius. "The risks are high, but we have no choice. We must press on and hope that luck is on our side."

I turn towards the exit. "It's been a long day," I say, "We'll meet again when we reach the station."

"Chieftain," Xandor and Astraxius say in unison as I make my way out of the room.

Finally, I arrive in my bedroom and find Pebbles sleeping soundly in the furs on our bed. Despite the darkness, I can make out her beautiful features - she looks like an innocent goddess made flesh. I tiptoe to the other side of the bed, trying not to wake her, and notice that she has left me some food on the desk. The small gesture warms my heart, and I devour the offering greedily before climbing into bed, trying to ignore the sleeping beauty beside me.

We all need to be rested for what tomorrow will bring.