Sirein: A Dystopian World Alien Romance by S.J. Sanders

Author:S.J. Sanders [Sanders, S.J.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2020-11-24T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 15

Heat exhaustion? Sunburn? He didn’t understand either of these words. All Ji’wa knew was that he felt like he was dying. His skin felt hot and tight, his scales dry as his temperature spiked. The room around him blurred in and out.

A cool, damp cloth stroked over his face, and he turned into the touch. Nerida was speaking to him, her voice low and soothing, but he had difficulty focusing on her words.

“I’m not sure how much good this hydration paste will do on your scales, but it’s the last I have. Let’s hope that one application does the job,” she murmured as she smeared a blissfully cool substance over him.

The hydration paste had a curious, sharp, refreshing scent to it that he dragged into his lungs. Nerida’s touch was so light that he barely felt it through his scales, but her voice washed over him, comforting him. After a moment, her hand went behind his head, encouraging him to sit up enough to sip some water from a cup. His stomach churned, and he let his head drop back as he fought back the need to eject the much-needed fluid from his body.

“How long have you been feeling ill?” she asked softly as she applied more of the paste.

Swallowing back another wave of nausea, he groaned. “I am not sure exactly… I was studying your machinery. The sun felt hot. I am not accustomed to being above water… on a planet’s surface… without… a conditioned environment. I did not think… anything of it,” he wheezed as everything seemed to upturn around him in a nauseating fashion with the movement of Nerida’s boat.

His female’s expression grew more chagrined.

“I should have thought about how direct sunlight might affect you. You’re new to this world and clearly not accustomed to life on the surface. Even seasoned wavelanders—my people—can succumb to heat exhaustion if we aren’t careful. I know that. This is my fault,” she added with no little self-disgust in her voice.

It took a couple of tries, but he snagged her hand in his and drew it toward his cheek. He nuzzled the back of her hand. Her fingers still smelled of the cool paste.

“Do not be ridiculous,” he murmured tiredly. “You couldn’t have… known.” He swallowed thickly, his eyes fluttering closed. “I could sleep… for a long time.”

“Then sleep,” she said quietly. “I will be here.”

He felt her finger tangle in his hair, and he sighed with pleasure as he settled more comfortably into the bed… or at least as comfortable as he could get in his current condition. He was vaguely aware of his fin spines pinching tightly and groaned unhappily.

Ji’wa rolled onto his side, facing Nerida. A cloth stroked over his face again, and he nuzzled the pillow beneath his head. The scent of his female teased him, making him aware that it was her bed that he rested on. Turning his face more into the pillow, he inhaled the scent of the sea and something sweet that seemed to cling to the bedding.

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