Coil of Worlds

The savagery of the attack caught her off guard because she didn’t feel anger coursing through the two men. Instead, Lara felt their relish at hurting the Pyranni. She backed away from the sickening sensation. She looked at Chion for guidance on how to respond. In horror, she stepped back again, putting even more space between Chion and her.

His expression was one of clinical interest. She couldn’t believe it. No one, not even the paka, viewed the attack as repulsive or inhumane.

The grunts and thuds coming from the threesome made her want to retch. This world was too violent. Unable to withstand another second, Lara screamed her disgust and betrayal. She screamed until the others’ taste for pain dissolved into surprise.

But once she started, she couldn’t stop.

She screamed until she finally had to stop for lack of oxygen. Her chest heaved as tears ran down her face. When Chion came over to comfort her, she stumbled away from him. Lara held out a shaking hand to stop him from coming closer. She felt his hurt, but her disgust overruled her visceral need to comfort him. Silence reigned as all four waited for her next move. They watched her as she tried to shove her revulsion inward, leaving rationality behind.

She glared at Matu and Tighan. “Why the hell did you attack him?”

She felt their surprise as they both glanced at each other in bewilderment. Matu finally replied in a righteous tone, “He wasn’t going t’ answer ye.”

She stared at him in disbelief. “So? People don’t beat the crap out of someone simply because they don’t answer a stupid question.”

“He’s a P’ranni,” Tighan said, shrugging in indifference. “What do ye care?”

Her head reeled back. She couldn’t believe what she’d just heard. Lara took a deep breath. “What the heck does my caring have anything to do with this? How about everything? Or nothing? He’s a human being. He deserves humane treatment, especially if he is at the mercy of others. He’s bound and unable to defend himself. His treatment speaks more about you than him.”

By the time she was finished, she was poking Tighan in the chest with a forefinger. His astonishment at her vehement censure was in direct proportion to his rising anger. As angry as she was, Lara knew the situation necessitated caution. Feeling their delight at beating an unarmed man told her how cruel and mean the man standing in front of her could be. Lara failed to notice Chion moving to a position adjacent to her, keeping vigil.

Although she was a foot shorter than the man, she didn’t back down when he towered over her and scowled. Lara glowered back until he was the first to shift his eyes away.

Dismissing the three Kurites, she stalked over to where they were sitting and found a small cup. She filled the cup at the stream and carried it to the man crumpled on the ground. When Chion moved closer to her, she raised her hand, stopping him. She didn’t want him anywhere near her until she processed his actions. Lara trusted him, but she now knew she didn’t understand him.

A familiar stranger.

Chion didn’t say anything but sat on his haunches and studied her as if she was someone he’d never met. She sneered at him. As if she was the one needing analyzed. The two men’s emotions were a rich combination of uncertainty, anger, and fear. They were now wary of her temper.

Maybe Chion was right. Maybe the men did fear her. Grumbling sulkily to each other, they wandered over to their bedrolls, leaving her with the prisoner.

Lara slowly approached the bleeding prisoner, making as much noise as possible. “You can’t see me, so I’m going to tell you every move I make before I make it. I don’t want to startle you after what you’ve been through.” She waited for his nod before she continued, “I’m going to touch you on your shoulder. I can help you turn around into a more comfortable position.”

When she lightly touched his shoulder, he grunted in acknowledgement and rotated his body so his back was to the wall. She gasped when she saw the damage to his face—blood flowed down his face and dripped onto his shirt. His nose had been smashed against the rocks, leaving a bloody mess. Thin cuts trailed down the right side of his face.

Suddenly, he looked right at her and spat blood on her face. With hate and anger coating his words, the prisoner said, “I do not need the help of a woman. Not from a woman who practices vile magic.”

The guards laughed at her, their humor hitting her like a gust of wind and heat. Lara grimaced as she breathed a girly “Ew.” When she heard Chion growl over her shoulder, she shook her head, praying he didn’t attack the man.

Chion said with a dark edge in his voice, Be wary of the Pyranni. He is dangerous, though his bindings restrain his movements. As if in afterthought, he whispered, They do not see women as Kurites do.

Lara laughed disparagingly at the situation. Men were all the same no matter what planet she was on. Ah. That explains it. I came to his rescue, and he hates me for it. She heaved a sigh and said, “Figures. Men can be such ungrateful dogs.”

Holding her right sleeve with her left hand, she leaned her head over and wiped the blood and spit off her face. Irate, she demanded, “Do you want water or not?”

When he held out his tied hands, she moved forward to hand the cup to him. In the split second that followed, he grabbed her arm and spun her around, keeping her arm in a painful arm lock behind her back. The cup went flying across the room and clattered across the floor, leaving a spray of water in its path. A jerk on her arm lifted her back off the ground, though she was draped across the man’s body like a shield. It prevented Chion from springing onto the Pyranni.

She yelled in pain, “Sonofa! God. That hurts.” Chion’s anger, a combination of molten fire and cold ice, pulsed through their mental link. Lying so close, she could feel the captive’s tension and determination to escape radiating from him. His hands and breath were steady. The nameless man was ready for anything the others threw his way. In his mind, she was a helpless female, a bargaining chip he could use. If anyone attacked, she’d be the one hurt.

Her mouth clicked shut. Not if she had anything to do with it. Looking over her right shoulder as best she could, Lara remembered something a friend had told her several years before.

While the guards shouted empty orders and Chion paced back and forth, utterly silent in his anger, she adjusted her weight to her thighs and calves. Lara winced when the pressure on her twisted arm increased in painful warning, but she kept sliding her left hand behind her. She looked over her shoulder—almost hyperventilating from the pain—and found just what she was aiming for.

Her brows furrowed in concentration as she grabbed a handful of the man between his legs. He yelped in pain, and she twisted her hand and dug her fingernails ruthlessly into his tender bits. After that, the man wanted nothing but to get rid of her hand. The Pyranni warrior thrust her away, groaning in agony. But he forgot she still had a stranglehold on his balls, making her jerk hard on the abused private parts. Lara turned, uncurled her hand, and watched in smug victory as he nosedived to the ground, cupping his bound hands over himself. He groaned in misery as his legs coiled into his body.

The guards howled in laughter, holding their sides as they gulped for air. Chion bumped her shoulder with his nose. You, My Lady, are a dangerous woman.

She snorted and rotated her arm, checking for bruised muscles. “Yeah, right. I now have icky stuff under my fingernails. I’ve got to wash my hands.” She clambered up from the ground and gazed down at the still panting man. She said in disgust, “Men are all lying pigs.”

She walked over to the stream with Chion a few steps behind her. While she scrubbed her hands and splashed her face, she whispered to the paka, I don’t understand... Lara trailed off and stared into the water, watching the current take the water away. Her bewilderment flowed from her to the paka.

Chion gently pressed her, What is it you do not understand, My Lady?

Lara sank both her hands into the cool water. She watched the disturbed dirt and rocks from the bottom swirl and float further downstream as she created circles with her hands. Her emotions settled, the feel and sound of the water soothing her.

Minutes later, Lara stood up, wiping her hand on the back of her pants. The prisoner was sitting up, though he was still hunched over. A length of time passed before she answered the paka. Anything. I don’t understand anything in this place—this world. Everything is so confusing. The magic is making me become a different person. The brutality and the emotions are overwhelming.

She pointed at the man leaning against the wall. Beating a prisoner is something I’ve never had to deal with. I just want to go home where everything is normal. There I am normal, and nobody is trying to attack me or hurt me. I’m normal. I’m tired of being the odd one out, constantly having to cover up my ignorance. She grimaced, her back molars grinding, completely and emotionally spent. The two men’s emotions were wearing her down, and they’d only been together for an hour at most. Her shoulders slumped of their own accord, and her head dropped until she was staring at her toes.

Chion edged closer until he could gaze solemnly up into her eyes. He said nothing for a time, almost as if he was composing each word. A minuscule purr escaped, and they both listened to it echo around the small cave. Neither broke eye contact, both receiving a small measure of something that couldn’t be explained in words. The rest of the room disappeared from Lara’s vision.

This world must be a grand departure from everything you have grown to believe in your short life. I know that I cannot begin to fathom what you are feeling unless I somehow visit your world. In the face of unknown dangers, your bravery is admirable. He cocked his head, though he didn’t break eye contact. I admit I do not understand the peculiar twist our bond has taken. But I do know we are fully bonded. This is irrefutable. We will face the dangers of my world together.

With a last intense look that spoke volumes about his sincerity, Chion broke eye contact and wrapped his feline body around her. He stroked his left cheek on her hipbone, back and forth in a hypnotizing motion. She scratched the small hollow right below his right ear.

His next words were full of awe. I do believe with all my being that you were brought here for a reason that was pre-destined. I believe this world—my kingdom—needs you more than either of us realize.