Page 12 of Beast Unburdened

She sighed and tilted her head so I could nuzzle at her throat. “Oh okay, I’ll try to talk to her today.” Then she had to let go of my horn so we could get up and receive our breakfast from the belligerent-looking Thonklad. I let my hands slide down her back slowly and I didn’t release my tail from where it wrapped around her ankle until I was taken from the cell with the other gladiators for another day at the gym.

*

Abigail

Oh my god, I’d slept in Ziame’s arms and I’d slept like a baby! Even after he’d left I was still sort of floating where I sat huddled on the cot in my blanket which smelled like him. Waking up on top of his warm firm body was far more comfortable than it should be considering that he was covered in firm scales.

Never mind the fact that his tail had wrapped around one of my legs and a single hand of his spanned the entire width of my back. I had felt coddled, protected and positively tiny. I had never in all my previous relationships felt like that. My last ex had literally broken up with me because I was too manly and independent.

I was still blushing from our conversation too, had I really decided I wanted to try and date this guy? This alien who told me his mouth was too different for kissing? But who claimed his cock was alright. Shit, was I willing to go there? Not right now but at some point? Have sex with him? The heat curling between my legs told me I absolutely was and I was a little shocked. I had never thought someone so alien would do it for me but I guess it did. Maybe it was because Ziame was so damn nice, I certainly felt like he deserved to have a good time after all he’d been through, and how he’d protected me so far.

Forcing myself to get rid of these thoughts I tried to focus on what really mattered right now, getting out of here. Getting that other woman to talk to me, hear her story, reassure her somehow. I should be focusing on that, and on staying warm obviously because I was already missing my big guy a lot.

I remembered the way his tail had stayed curled around my leg until the very last moment fondly. I’d never been one of those clingy girls who wanted to constantly sit next to or touch their partner, wherever they went. But that tail, damn that was just so pleasant, to feel connected like that. Sigh, okay get your mind on track girl! I had to help that other lady.

Standing I curled the blanket tightly around my shoulders for warmth and headed for the bars so I could possibly see the newest arrival. She hadn’t made a peep yet all morning though I knew the guard had thrown food into her cell just like with everyone else.

“Hey, can we talk? Are you alright?” I asked, feeling a little stupid, maybe she was sleeping. It was only about thirty feet between us, the other cells were much smaller than Ziame’s cell after all. But still, it felt a little like I was yelling across a street, hoping an acquaintance heard you.

After a few seconds, there was a shuffling sound and then a human face pressed up against the bars. She was similarly tucked into her blanket but she didn’t seem to be shaking from the cold the way I was, a relief to be sure. I had worried she was freezing in there, she didn’t have her own personal space heater during the night.

Her pregnant belly looked terribly misshapen and out of place but maybe that was because she was so small and thin; it was disproportionate. Most women got that rounded glow to their face, this poor girl was sallow and thin. Like she hadn’t been eating enough.

“Hi,” she said softly when we’d stared at each other for a moment. Her pale pink face was tear-streaked, her eyes red-rimmed and bloodshot. The long blonde hair lay limply against her thin shoulders.

“Hi, are you hurt?” I asked, feeling concerned for the poor woman. She was clearly not in any way, shape, or form okay. She shrugged, “No, just pregnant.” There was a scathing laugh, “Which I didn’t even know until I woke up on a freaking alien spaceship last night!” Then she clapped her hands over her mouth looking horrified she’d spoken, her face turning red.

I was a little horrified myself, “Are you saying you were flat as a pancake one moment and woke up with a beach ball in your belly? Shit, that’s rough.” The woman nodded her blonde head with a pained look on her face. “I’m Tori by the way… I know you said your name is Abigail?”

“Tori, nice to meet you, I guess.” I said and snorted, “Under the circumstances that is. You can call me Abby.” Then I checked to make sure the door to the cellblock was still firmly closed before adding, “I know all those guys in the other cells look utterly terrifying but some of them aren’t so bad. Ziame is working on a plan to get us out. It’ll be soon so you just need to hang on in there a little longer.”

She sighed and rolled her shoulders in, making herself small but bravely nodded her head, “Okay...” We talked for some time, so I learned she’d just scored her first big role on Broadway which was awesome. Not so awesome that she was missing all that. I learned obviously that she was a New Yorker just like me and from a big Italian family which was probably worried out of their mind right now, the last made her cry and effectively ended the conversation for a while.

I was actually almost relieved to see Thonklad show up with a haunch of meat for the beast in the cell in the middle. Sadly for Tori, it was across the hallway so she had a perfect view of the creature as it lunged for the meat and started noisily devouring. I heard her chanting, “Oh god! Oh god! Oh god!”

Then Thonklad approached my cell and told me to get out and follow him as I had another doctor’s appointment. As we passed the cell I could see only the huge outline of the big creature and its glowing red eyes in the dark.

Though my Krektar guard wanted to hurry me past Tori’s cell I halted and met the woman’s tear-stained face. “What about her? Doesn’t Doc want to see her too?” I looked at the wart-covered face of my jailer and caught a guilty look just in time. “Oh he did want to see her but you don’t want to is that it? How’s your boss going to react when he finds out you jeopardized the health of the product?”

At my sharp words, the Krektar growled but it petered out into a sulky kind of sound while he gestured angrily at Tori in her cell. “She’s got some kind of disease that could be deadly to my species. I ain’t touching her!” My wide eyes darted to Tori who looked pale and frightened but she gave a little shrug that told me this was news to her too.

“Well, you don’t need to touch her, and if anything that makes it even more important for Doc to see her doesn’t it? The sooner he cures her and all that...” Thonklad looked like he’d swallowed a lemon, or maybe a whole bucket of them because his textured gray throat worked hard a few times, his tusks quivering.

“Fine!” he threw his hands in the air but then opened Tori’s cell with a click of a button and anxiously scooted back. I on the other hand gently wove my arm through hers and guided her with us through the disgusting hallways to the Doc’s medical bay. Like that it was noticeable just how tiny this woman was compared to me, especially since I was still in my favorite pair of stilettos. She came up to my armpit and that was it, I had forgotten how much I felt like a giant on earth. It should feel unpleasant but it was somehow oddly comforting too.

“Are you sure about this?” Tori whispered softly at me and I gave her a firm nod but eyed Thonklad just in front of us. Was he going to be waiting outside like yesterday or was he going to be watching us the whole time?

I shouldn’t have worried, the moment we stepped out of the dirty hallway and into the immaculate medical room our guard nodded at the Doc, pointed at the pain controller for our collars, and then turned on his heel. As the door slid closed I waved, “Hey there Luka.”

While my casual greeting made the handsome but scary-eyed doctor beam a smile my way it caused Tori to squeak and then hide behind my back. Those scary eyes of his made quite the impact obviously. I’d caught the Doc’s pained look though, he didn’t like it when his patients were scared of him.

“Are you both alright? Not too cold?” he asked while he gestured for us to take a seat side by side on the medical cot. I shrugged, “Ziame kept me warm.” When my words made him frown in confusion I added, “The Beast.” That had Tori gasp in fright, “Your cellmate is called that?”

“That’s a good thing,” I told the young woman, “It means he can protect us.” Luka had taken his hand scanner to check on both of us and now he nodded, “He’s good to you? I’m glad. I was so worried for you that first night.”

“Thanks,” I said and I meant it, this guy was a marsh-mellow. It was the scary eyes that made him look terrifying but really once you got over that part I realized he was nothing but kind. In fact, I would bet that he absolutely would take the doctor’s oath to do no harm seriously.

“You’re both healthy, the baby too,” he said when he’d finished looking at his scans. This time I frowned and cast a look at Tori but she was gazing at her bloated belly with a look of fear and revulsion, absolutely not the picture of a happy mother-to-be.