Duric: A Science Fiction Romance by Storm Athena

Author:Storm, Athena
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Athenaverse Press
Published: 2019-08-27T16:00:00+00:00

Eighteen

Duric

As we press deeper into the jungle, the growth is more ancient. Enormous trees with the strange triangular leaves stretch up nearly out of sight, their dense foliage blocking all but the most determined sunlight from reaching the forest floor. This moon has been relatively untouched by bipedal sapient species, so there are no paths to speak of.

At first, I forge on ahead to plot our path, keeping to Daphne’s plan. But as the jungle encroaches upon us ever tighter, I soon find that my larger frame makes for slower progress through the dense undergrowth.

Thus, I’m only a few paces ahead of Daphne when my belly rumbles loudly enough for her to hear.

“Duric, let’s stop for a rest and eat. I still have some roots and berries left.”

The prospect of eating more of the sickly sweet berries turns my stomach. Likewise, tough, flavorless roots aren’t the most appetizing either.

“I am tired of eating vegetation like some herbivorous mammal. I desire protein. Meat.”

“I know the feeling. I’d like nothing better than to chow down on a New York porterhouse with a baked potato, but for the time being that’s just not possible. Have some berries, please. You need to keep your strength up.”

Heaving a heavy sigh that flares out my nostrils, I relent. We find the ancient, gnarled roots of the towering tree-like plants make for comfortable seating, particularly with a soft coating of moss.

Daphne uses my knife to slice the roots very thin, so they curl like ribbons. Then she wraps the thin sheet of fiber around an eyeball sized berry. She smiles, and holds it up in front of my mouth. Smiling, I open my mouth and allow her to feed me. Though it’s the same food we’ve been eating, the tartness of the root compliments and tones down the sweet berry’s flavor. She manufactures several more of the treats before we run out of berries.

Despite her protestations, I insist that she eat the last one. I’m not sure how long humans can go without sustenance, but I wager it’s a great deal less than the several weeks we Vakutan can starve ourselves. Mind you, it’s a miserable several weeks, and we lose muscle mass and performance almost every day, but we can survive it.

Then we continue on, my eyes peeled for any sight of danger in the gloomy jungle. Our pace slows to a crawl, as we have to scamper over gnarled and twisting roots or around the massive boles of the triangle trees. We come across small amphibious creatures, too small and slimy to easily capture—and I tried several times. Their flat, smooth orange skin isn’t exactly appetizing, but I’m certain that they would be more sustaining than berries.

Unfortunately, they’re much too fast for me to catch. Worse, they have a habit of creating boroughs beneath piles of fallen leaves, so Daphne and I both stumble several times when we think we are stepping on solid ground but wind up plunging our ambulatory limbs into muddy trenches.

It’s

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