Episode Fifty-One Discussion

T hallose

My heart almost stopped beating in my chest when Nadira threatened these two thieves. They don't appear to be shy about using their weapons to get what they want. For a moment, I wondered if one of them would release their bowstring and pierce my mate through the heart.

If I'd wondered about my feelings for her before now, there is no longer any doubt about how deeply I care for her. If they had harmed my mate, I would have flown to the ends of the Earth to find them and kill them slowly.

"We ate all the rabbit Thallose killed, but I have jerky in my pack," Nadira says, as if they hadn't just threatened our lives.

The three of them seem to be over our troubled beginnings, but I don't think I can quickly forgive them for threatening my mate.

The elf, Eldar, puts a few more logs on the fire, and the centaur returns from a couple quick trips to the forest with some stumps he pulled out of the ground. The four of us are now sitting around the fire, talking. Well, three of us are sitting. The centaur stands.

"You've got spirit," Zoron says. "Cut off our balls and stuff them in our mouths. That was clever." He laughs.

"I meant every word," my feisty mate says, looking the beefy centaur in the eye. He just chuckles, stomping one of his back hooves.

Soon we're talking about our mission. We take no pains to keep our plans secret. There isn't a person Down Below who would betray us to those from Up Above. It would be stupid. These two thieves would never have anything to do with the human bosses from the work camp.

"So you're going to invade the Works?" Eldar asks, his gaze flicking from Nadira to me and back again. "The two of you?"

"No," I say. "We're doing reconnaissance. This mission is too important to botch. As much as we want to free the slaves, we want to ensure as few of our kind are hurt as possible. We're going to see the layout, get a feel for how many slaves are there and how many masters."

"How are you going to do this recon?" the elf asks. The glance from the corner of his eyes is skeptical.

Nadira and I hadn't discussed this in detail, but I have such strong feelings about it I spear her with my gaze as I say, "My mate is going to wait in safety while I fly overhead. I'll see what's down there, get the lay of the land, and gather as many specifics as possible. When I return for her, we'll write it all down, I'll draw a map, and we'll return to our home to gather a force big enough to make the raid."

Nadira's gaze sharpens as I explain this. If she could shoot fireballs from her eyes, I'd be dead.

"You're not leaving me. I'm going with you," she insists, her voice low and firm, her nostrils flaring.

"That's a suicide mission. They'll shoot you down in a heartbeat," Eldar says. "They have lasers. Did you fly all this way here just to die?"

He goes on to explain how he'd been held there as a prisoner when he was young. "Elves are tiny until we hit puberty. I was more of a curiosity than a laborer. One of the bosses kept me in his house and had me fetch things for him. When he was working, I slipped out and explored."

He stands, easily jumps onto Zoron's back, and strokes the big male's muscular back. It's as if he can't stay away from his mate for long without touching him. Watching this must spark something in Nadira, because she takes this lull in his story to approach me and slide onto my lap.

"I may have been small, but I was smart and methodical. I explored the cave system, marking a map with soft, white rock on the hard, black stone walls. One day I found the back way out. I never returned."

"You can take us there? Show us the back way in?" Nadira asks, her excitement obvious.

"What's in it for me?" Eldar asks.

I guess I shouldn't have expected him to want to do anything for free. Why would he help strangers? He's probably wondering about the orc's stash. It's widely rumored the orcs have been hoarding gold and gems from the before-times.

"What's in it for you?" Nadira asks softly, as if she's going to talk him into helping us for nothing. I guess she hasn't been in the Down Below long enough to realize just as there are bad people Up Above, there are greedy folks here, too.

"You were a prisoner there. Were you treated well? Did the boss give you plentiful food and expensive gifts? You were a slave, Eldar, and I can only imagine the way you were brought there involved pain and possibly death for members of your family. Don't you want to free others who are still laboring there?"

The elf's normally placid face goes on lockdown as he considers her words. In the little time we've known him, it's clear he's a happy male who barges through life with little thought to anything other than his own pleasure. Nadira's questions stop him cold.

He slides off the centaur's back so he can be face-to-face with his lover. Zoron tugs the lithe elf to his chest and sways him in his thick arms as he shoots Nadira an angry look.

"My mate has been through a lot," Zoron scolds. "He doesn't like to think of those times. You had no right to remind him."

"It's okay, my love." Eldar shrugs as if he's unperturbed while Zoron soothes his large hand down Eldar's back.

Eldar steps even closer to the larger male, then looks directly at Nadira. His demeanor has changed from blustering bravado to sober concern.

"I'll take you in through the cave system," he says. "If there's a way to free the slaves, you've got yourselves another soldier." He glances at his mate and when Zoron nods, he adds, "Two. Two more soldiers."