Chapter 7

Subdued I stared at the two walking away, wondering how the hell the Tarakona managed to get into the cottage. The assumption that they were nocturnal was a major misconception. The Talian guard was checking the nails of the dead assailant, using the point of his knife to scrape out any material from under the nail on a tissue.

“This one climbed trees,” the guard rumbled as he pointed at the little pieces of bark, “must have come from mountain.”

I realized that the Tarakona must have been following us, tracking the sweet smell of Cirin. “Why did he wait until Cirin was in her cottage? He could have attacked us while we were hiking back to the village.”

“They know when it is good time to get woman.”

I understood what the Talian meant; they only attack at the moment a Neutaria is about to change. I did remember Cirin’s discomfort about the change, losing any control over her body. I was pretty sure the Tarakona had tied her up without her noticing it. “Were all victims tied up like Cirin?”

The large man nodded slowly. “Ciriii did not die because you stopped him.”

I nodded while I was trying to get something sticky off my fingers. It had been bothering me for some time and as I looked at the substance, which was only on my right hand, I wondered where it was coming from. I smelled it and the unpleasant odor was similar to the deceased Tarakona. The only time I had physical contact with him was at the moment I pulled him off Cirin. I had grabbed him around the neck, knowing it was the only way to pull someone away. I examined the sticky substance closer, wondering if it was some kind of outer skin. It had a slight milky color which might have been caused by the warm water of the shower. As I was rolling the substance between my fingers, I suddenly realized what it was.

“Do you have a scanner with you?” I asked the guard who was scraping the nails of the other hand of the Tarakona.

Without saying a word, he gave me a beaten up hand scanner. I instantly recognized the make which was widely used on most of the planets. As soon as I turned it on, it recognized my DNA as an Earthling. The display flickered a moment, and the language was automatically changed into English. I pointed the scanner at the Tarakona and it showed a green tick. Only after I pointed it at the puddle of blood did the scanner beep loudly, warning about the Tarakona species.

I flipped through the menu on the scanner looking at the settings to understand how it was configured. It was simple to add one extra item which should raise an alarm. I saved the altered configuration and scanned the prostrate body again and the scanner beeped loudly. Then I pointed it at the fingers of my right hand and as expected, it beeped again.

Meanwhile the Talian guard looked with great interest at what I was doing. “They have used a biogenetic compound to seal off their skin,” I explained to him, “It was been used a long time ago for sealing merchandise for transport but it was banned because it altered the good’s DNA.”

“Tarakonas use it for sealing off their skin,” the guard nodded in understanding.

“Indeed,” I answered enthusiastically, “I have added it to your list. Now you’re able to detect them again.”

The guard bowed his head as he said, “Good, Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

His face turned into a grim expression as he rumbled, “You need to go to Mitta. Ciriii is in danger and for village. I will be there after taking care of body.”

I nodded, realizing I was getting cold as I was still wearing my wet jeans and t-shirt. Then it hit me; Cirin was a female Tarakona and ready to be impregnated! Her smell must be very attractive for other Tarakonas. “She is like a huge magnet for the other Tarakonas.”

He nodded. “Need to find good place to protect her.”

“There is a place where we can go,” I said as I walked towards the bashed doorframe, “I’ll discuss it with Mitta and Cirin. I’ll see you shortly.”

The Talian guard nodded.

As I walked back to my cottage, I wondered what effect the biogenetic compound would have on the Tarakonas in the long term. After all, sealing off your skin like that must be very unhealthy. It came to my mind that those creatures were on a suicide attack, trying to kill as many Bishojan women as possible. Maybe it was a revived retaliation against the Bishojan government who had banned them ages ago.

I quickly got dressed after I had a short shower to warm myself. I wanted to see Cirin and Mitta as soon as possible, knowing about the risk Cirin was in. But foremost; I really wanted to be there for her, to support her after the traumatic experience she had had. As I walked into the dining area of the cottage, I saw Mitta and Cirin sitting at the table. There were a few bowls filled with fruits and bread rolls.

Cirin was demurely nibbling on some fruit I didn’t recognize. It was disturbingly strange to see her altered face, but it was the first time I actually checked out her body since the change. Her chest was not what I had expected because she now had two rows of breasts. The top breasts were the biggest and the other ones beneath were slightly smaller but still clearly visible through the tunic she was wearing.

“Hi Cirin, Mitta,” I said as I made my way to the table. The pungent smell was clearly there, it was similar to the Tarakona except it was definitely less acrid and therefore more bearable.

I saw Mitta’s concerned expression as she was caressing Cirin’s arm. “Thank you for killing the bastard.”

I nodded. “I had no choice; it was me or him.”

“Well at least the threat is gone,” she sighed with a forced smile, “now we can focus on restoring the situation.”

“I’m afraid we still have a major problem, Mitta.” I responded as I nervously tapped my fingers on the table.

“What is it, Paul?’ Cirin asked in a small voice.

I cleared my throat as I sat down next to her. “You are a female Tarakona now, ready to get pregnant. If there are any other Tarakonas they definitely will hunt you down.”

“By Bisha!” whispered Mitta, dismayed, “They will all come here.”

“Most likely,” I affirmed, “The Talian guard wants you to be somewhere safe, Cirin. I was thinking of going back to the cave cottage. At least you’re safe there and perhaps we can lure them to come. I’m pretty sure we can setup an ambush.”

“I’ll do it,” Cirin said resolutely, “But I don’t want to be alone in the cottage. Are you coming with me?”

My smile made her sigh with relief. “Of course,” I answered, “you do need your cuddle toy, don’t you?”

A tear fell down from an eye as she nodded slowly. I carefully took her hand, avoiding the sharp nails and said soothingly, “Don’t worry; I’ll keep you warm.”

I glanced at Mitta who clearly had a troubled expression edged on her face. At the moment, I wanted to ask what was bothering her, the Talian guard stepped into the room. His short mop of hair almost touched the ceiling as he straightened his back.

“Pac,” Mitta said respectfully, “I’ve heard the disturbing news. We think it is best to bring Cirin to the travel lodge in the mountains.”

The guard grunted as he nodded. “Lodge is a safe place for Ciriii.”

Cirin’s smile looked weird, as she said, “Paul will come with me.”

Pac turned his massive head towards me as he replied, “Earthling is good choice Ciriii. Lorry will be here soon.”

I heard Mitta gasp softly. I was curious why, but I decided to accept the fact I didn’t need to know everything about what was going on. The most pressing issue was about to be solved; the village would be a lot safer if Cirin moved away. I assumed that a whole army of Talian guards would accompany us to the lodge and deal with the Tarakonas who might track Cirin down.

“I better get some food organized,” Mitta responded with a slight tremble in her voice as she stood from the table. The silence was loaded with a strange energy the moment Mitta left the dining area, probably because I still had trouble being close to such a scary giant.

“Ciriii, all good?” asked the Talian guard as he gently laid his hand on her arm.

Cirin nodded, unperturbed by the fact his massive hand was about to crush her. “I’m happy I’m still alive.”

“Pac is happy too.”

Her smile showed affection towards the Talian, which I found a little unsettling, but seeing Cirin’s relaxed demeanor I could only accept what was happening.

The huge truck took us to the cottage in twenty minutes, which felt to me like cheating as we normally needed about six hours to get there by foot. The trip was strange because Cirin and I were sharing a seat which was just a little too narrow. During the bumpy journey, Cirin and I were constantly jostled against each other. I noticed her body was a lot softer, cushioning our gentle collisions. Even though she didn’t have an Earthly female body, her softness was significantly apparent, comparing to when she was a Neutaria.