Chapter Two

Chapter Two

“D

amage report,” shouted Hsing-I, the leader of the Eloheem tribe and Commander of the Mothership.

Yehfe peered over his brother, Pakua’s, shoulder as the male searched the ship for impairment.

“The Grey’s ship rammed into our stern,” reported Pakua.

While his brother and the other Yin looked at the screen’s report, Yehfe reached out with his hearts to the life form in the opposing ship. Distress called back to him.

The solo fighter ship had chased them through the asteroid belt between the red planet the humans called Mars and the brown planet they called Jupiter. The Grey ship may have been one of those patrolling the womb rock known as Terra, or Earth as the humans called their own planet. It was illegal for higher life forms to breach the rock without permission. Abducting human women was definitely not a permitted activity.

“It looks like the Grey’s ship is going down,” said Pakua.

“We have to save him.” Yehfe leaned over the console to see the image of the ship tumbling into the abyss. He reached out to the life form and felt its suffering.

“That creature tried to send us to the next life.” Pakua’s voice was like the angry growl of a low animal.

“I do not believe it was purposeful.” Yehfe shook his head at his twin. “We are traveling through an asteroid belt. By ramming into us he would only hurt himself.”

Pakua glared at the screen that showed the other ship’s position. The ship was falling into the ether.

“We can not let an innocent creature die,” said Yehfe. “It is not in our nature.”

“It is not in

your

nature,” said Pakua.

“Perhaps if we bring him aboard, we can reason with him.”

The Yins gathered recoiled at Yehfe’s suggestion. He was the only Yang on deck.

“What other options do we have of making clear our name with the Neterians? Perhaps this can be our chance to redeem ourselves with the elders.”

Hsing-I’s eyes narrowed at Yehfe’s words. Their tribe was deemed tainted after a vicious attack sent some of their parents into madness. The surviving Eloheem had all been children at the time and were only concerned with their grieving and their own survival after the attack.

Now, most of the males on board were full grown. They were done grieving and they were tired of running. They remembered that there was more to life than just survival.

Hsing-I and his brother, Chen-Na, had recently mated. Yehfe knew the brothers wanted to find a place to settle the Mothership; to begin their work and start a family of their own. Yehfe wanted the same thing. Though he couldn’t say the same for his own brother.

“If we rescue the Grey, perhaps we can get him to listen,” Yehfe continued his plea directly to Hsing-I. “Then, once he’s healed, we can release him so that he might report back to the Neterians.”

Hsing-I and Pakua exchanged a look. They weighed Yehfe’s proposal. Yehfe could see Pakua’s rational brain make the calculations. Yehfe breathed a sigh of relief when the calculations came out weighing in the despairing soul’s favor.

Yehfe left Hsing-I and Pakua to determine the logistics of the rescue. When Yehfe entered the hall, he encountered Chen-Na. The two males bowed to each other. Before Yehfe could update Chen on the matters at hand his mate, Shanti, approached.

Chen’s face transformed at the sight of her. The pale blue Eloh took his mate into his arms and pressed their foreheads together. Shanti pressed her lips to Chen’s and Chen allowed the intimacy. Yehfe averted his eyes, but the image burned him in the gut.

“How are our guests?” Chen asked his mate.

“They don’t feel like guests,” Shanti replied. “They feel like prisoners.”

“It is only temporary, my only. Until we can return them to the Earth. It is not yet safe to turn back.”

“We will need to return them soon,” said Yehfe. “Especially the mother and child. Her mate will be sick with worry.”

All of the Eloheem knew the pain of separation between parents and children. Even after many revolutions, the deaths of their parents still felt like an open wound. Yehfe could only imagine the human male’s suffering. If it were his family that had been taken, he would move the Heavens to find them.

He looked at the connection between Shanti and Chen. The power of their bond glowed bright. Yehfe had to look away again from their dazzling light. The glory of it burned in his hearts. Yearning was a gas cloud fogging his eyes.

Hsing and Pakua came out of the control room. Hsing bypassed Yehfe and cut a path to Shanti. He scooped his mate out of his brother’s arms.

Chen let her go with an amused sigh. There was no hesitation, no jealousy. Eloh brothers were bonded deeply to each other, and that bond transferred to their mate.

“We’re going to rescue the Grey,” Hsing told his mate after touching his lips to hers.

“Is that safe?” she asked as she caressed his face.

“It has the potential to make us safer. That is always my goal, little one.”

Shanti worried her bottom lip, but she nodded. Hsing put an arm around Chen. The three stood there in solidarity.

Pakua stood away from Yehfe, off on his own. Pakua turned his face away from the affection between the triad. He crossed his arms and balled his fist.

Pakua had closed himself off to any form of connection shortly after he and Yehfe lost their mother and Yang father. The bond between the brothers had never been the same again. But still, Yehfe reached out a hand to his brother.

“Be safe, Pakua.”

Pakua evaded his brother’s touch. He offered Yehfe a nod of acknowledgment before turning for the helipad, followed by Hsing.

Yehfe turned to Shanti. “Is there anything I can do for the females?”

Shanti shook her head. “They’re not very trusting of Eloheem at the moment. They just need some time.”

“Time is a luxury they can’t afford if they want to return to their family and make it whole again.”

“Why don’t you go and console Niao,” she said. “He tried to help and they rejected him. He took it badly, poor thing.”

That was Yehfe’s job, taking care of the younglings on board. There were two sets of youngling brothers; Niao and Nse, and Cheng and Lung. Yehfe loved taking care of the young ones. It gave him a sense of peace, a sense of purpose. He wanted a family of his own, but he knew it wasn’t likely to ever happen with his brother so closed off and no females to approach.

And wasn’t it just his karma that two, grown females had landed in his presence; fallen right out of the sky. One was out of reach due to her bond with another man and the child of that bond. But perhaps the other would be amenable?

Perhaps if he could speak with her, charm her. Then maybe Pakua would come around. The bonding pull was a strong instinct. Yehfe would need to find a way to speak with the unbound female. Esther, Shanti had said her name was. Perhaps she was the key to his dreams of a family.