Chapter 21: Release

I didn't know how I managed to return to camp with my legs weak as bones of a limp fish. By the time I reached camp, the sun was almost gone from the sky but little of its light still passed through the trees. The fire of the camp was lit and I observed everyone before I passed through the tree line.

Everyone was happy. McKenna and Rory were playing some sort of game with their hands while Nettles is still trying to be friends with Brackett but to no avail. However, he was smiling throughout it. Of course, Coyle and Baxley kept arguing about mama jokes but the elation was radiating off of them and I smiled just a little bit. Nebraska was doing his own thing, laying back on his makeshift chair and not caring about anything in the world. It was nice to see them like this but when I turned to see Lar'ja back to working on the device, the memory of the conversation with the Bad Blood came back and my smile faded.

Do you want to know where you come from? Do you want answers to your past? Do you want to know why you are like this? I can give you the answers you seek. They tortured you, maimed you, tagged you like you were their property and made you feel like dirt. After all that, you still choose to protect them?

A headache was coming on again and I gripped the side of my head, feeling the sharp points of pain within that area before it began to fade away. What do I fucking do?

Finally, with a little bit of courage or at least I believed it was, I stepped out from the trees and bushes and entered the camp. No one seemed to mind my presence with the exception of Lar'ja. I could sense his stare at me but I couldn't look at him. With all that has happened between me and him . . . experiencing something new like that . . . I didn't have the nerve to see him. What an idiot I am . . .

I reached my sleeping area but I wasn't ready to go to bed. I laid down on my side, trying to enjoy the warmth from the fire but it does little to drive away from my anxiety. It wasn't until I heard footsteps behind me that I tensed up. I thought that it was Lar'ja that came to me. After not speaking to each other, I had an assumption that he would want to see if I was okay.

"Anya. Are you awake?"

That is definitely not Lar'ja. I twisted my upper body around to see Brackett looming over me with a worried look. I quickly assured her when I gave her a fake smile and thankfully, she took it.

"Yes, I am. What is it?"

I shifted my body into a sitting position with my legs crossed while Brackett does the same so that we were on eye level. I noted how serious she was from looking into her eyes but noticed that it wasn't like a life or death situation.

"Sorry about this but I found some things when further analyzing your blood. Do you have time to talk?"

"Of course."

I responded quickly to her and she was surprised. I understood since in the past I would get angry for her asking such a thing but she's all I've got to figure out about myself so I took it without question. She flips through her notebook and fumbling her words as she does this.

"Okay. From what I've found, you're definitely a hybrid between Yautja and human but not out of natural causes. It could be that your genes may have been spliced to accommodate the mix."

I nodded when she looks up at me but I didn't say anything. I was so focused on finding out what she knows.

"But then, I noticed that your blood can regenerate itself as a fast pace. Faster than a human and maybe even a Yautja. So if you get cut, the wound will only be there for a little bit before it's gone without a trace. Also, you've gained incredible strength and agility like a Yautja now but there might potentially be more than you can do."

"But why is it happening now? I mean . . . why am I changing like this?"

Now that I remember, nothing like this happened to me when I was at the labs. The blood . . . the transformation . . . None of it had occurred until now so it doesn't make sense to me. Brackett fumbles again and roughly shifts through her notebook for something.

"I couldn't find anything to answer that but I have a guess But it depends on your answer."

I became confused. "My answer?"

She nodded quickly. "Yes. So I want to ask you. When did you notice something was different?"

"What do you mean 'different'?"

"Well . . . like . . . you felt your body changing or you've been having dreams? I'm not really sure."

I scrambled for anything in my brain that fits Brackett's statement. Physical changes? Dreams? None if it popped in my head but then my mind snaps and my eyes widened in realization. When I first went to Stargazer's main lab to follow Lar'ja and I touched him for the first time, all of the memories of my time as a child came flooding then. I usually could suppress them before but after that, I was losing control.

And then . . . that is when the changes began to occur.

"I think I know."

"You do?"

"Yes. When I can into contact with Lar'ja at Stargazer's base . . . the one where we were both there . . . I had flashbacks that seemed too real and such. Ever since then, I was feeling different. Do you think that might have something to do with it?"

I gazed back at Brackett and she looked like she had her answer as to why so I wondered if the information I gave was what she was looking for.

"That makes sense now. My guess is that your Yautja blood was dormant in you until you touched Lar'ja since you've never met another Yautja until then. When that happened, it must have been awoken and started to act up. That's why you didn't experience these things until now."

For once, I found some clarity within Brackett's words. Everything that she said was making sense but I was still worried about 'future changes' to myself. If my Yautja blood was beginning to act up and with my body changing every day, who knows what might come next. However, I suspected that Brackett didn't have an answer to that or anyone else until it happens.

"But I do want to give a warning. I wouldn't recommend relying on your fast regeneration greatly. Especially during an intense battle like the one before."

"What do you mean?"

"Your blood is able to heal wounds quickly but only if your physical well-being is strong. If you take too much damage, then it will start to fail you. Not to mention that it can't heal burns and broken bones if it happens. Burns cauterize the blood before it can heal and mending bones is a very complicated process."

I had no intentions of relying on my blood to get me out of fights but when she talked about burns and broken bones, I recalled the times that Stargazer soldiers tortured me with a burning whip. It's making more sense now.

I took a huge breath and let it out slowly. I paused for a second before I started back towards Brackett.

"I understand. Is there anything else?"

She drops her shoulders a little and shows a disappointed expression on her face.

"No. That is all I could find with the limited equipment that I have. I wish I could do more for you. I mean . . . after hearing of your past . . . I . . ."

Before she could continue further, I reached for her hand and grabbed it on my own. I looked deep into her eyes and tried to convey a message of acceptance and maybe forgiveness.

"It's alright Brackett. You did everything you could for me and I greatly appreciate it. I know that I've been a bitch to you and there's no excuse for it. I thank you."

Brackett looked stunned at what I said but every word of it was true. I wanted her to know it. She stayed frozen where she was and I began to worry if I did something wrong until she placed her other hand on mine and then gave a small smile.

"You're welcome."

At that moment, the elation greatly grew inside of me. I was happy that I had gained a friend in her when I thought it wouldn't be possible. I've loathed scientists for a long time but now, I realized that it was only hurting me and causing so much pain. I just wished that I could say the same for everything else.

Then, to our shock, a loud voice rings throughout the camp and both me and Brackett let go of each other to see Coyle running around like a lunatic. He was like doing a monkey act or something and I questioned why he was acting like that until I saw he was carrying a beer bottle that was spilling every time he twirls. Come to think of it, how did the manage to get the beer? Must have been from stealing the trucks.

"Hey Bitches! Why isn't anyone joining me!? Let's have some fun!"

"What the fuck?"

That is all I could say about what was going on before me. I was in complete shock and also disgust. He's definitely drunk. No question about it.

"Hey, Coyle! I'm here with you!"

Baxley comes barreling over like a huge bear on his two feet, trying to walk like a human. They greeted each other with a weird hug and then danced around like fools. But I did get some amusement from them and I couldn't suppress a chuckle anymore. Brackett did the same thing as well so I wasn't the only one. Next thing I knew, Nebraska was coming along with Nettles, holding each other shoulders. They looked drunk but not as bad as Coyle and Baxley but it didn't make it any better. I decided to investigate this and I got up to stroll towards the drunkards.

"What the fuck are you guys doing?"

When all of them saw me, Coyle walks clumsily to me and holds out his arms into the air.

"Oh, my dear! We are having a party since it's been nothing but business around it and it's depressing. So we've decided to have some beer!"

I crossed my hands in front of my chest and gave my best glaring expression. I was not in the mood to hear these idiots all night long but Coyle didn't get the message. He just kept going on and on about some nonsense and I just stayed where I was, not even paying any attention to him. That is until I noticed McKenna came next to me and patted my shoulder.

"Relax. They deserve a night off like this. Besides, we only got this night until we're on the road tomorrow morning and I figure that we won't have time to do this again with dangerous things coming after us."

I wasn't entirely convinced that this was a good idea but he does make a point. We haven't got any time to relax like this so I relaxed a bit and McKenna smiled at me.

"Good. Anyway, why don't you have some fun?"

"Excuse me?"

I wanted to know what gave him that idea in the first place. I can only guess that he has seen how anxious I was when I got back to camp. I thought no one noticed me but when McKenna tilted his head and gave a 'you need it' look, I knew I was caught.

"Go and relax. You look like you can use time with the boys and have some beer. Unless you don't know how to drink."

When he says that last bit in a teasing tone, I turned so quickly to him that I thought my head would come flying off. I know that I wasn't legally old enough to drink but then again, I'm not the average person anyway. What harm can come of it?

"I know how to drink beer. Coyle! Give me a beer and I'll show you how to drink properly."

Coyle's eyes lit up and without saying anything, he skips over to the trucks. Now I know where they store it. I'll destroy it later if it's not gone by tonight.

But then I remembered something that I needed to ask McKenna. "What about you McKenna? And Rory?"

He chuckles. "Don't worry about that. I'm not going to drink so I'll be watching my son along with Brackett. She says that she's got some stuff to do."

"And Lar'ja?"

What would he think of this? Will he even bother?

"He went off to go hunting or something. I don't keep tabs on him and it's not my job. But he'll be back in a few."

Normally, I would have been indifferent but deep inside, I was saddened a little bit. I wanted him to be close to me. He made me feel safe when he was around. Then the memory of Lar'ja caressing my neck and the feeling of his tongue grazing over my collar bone came and the heat within my body began to rise.

Why are you thinking like this now?! Stop it!

I shook my head a little and gathered my composure so that McKenna didn't suspect anything. He was giving me some sort of weird look but I spoke before he could.

"Okay then. I'm just going to grab a beer and have fun as you said."

I quickly got out of there before he could stop me. I waved behind me so that I could give him some kind of goodbye but I didn't see if he got my message. Right at that moment, I was hoping to get that beer before anything else embarrassing happens. I just hope that I could forget everything for just one night at least.

"Anya! Come and get it!"

Right on cue, Coyle comes strolling with an unopened beer and tosses at me. I grabbed it midair and saw that it was that Corona stuff. I knew that it wasn't strong alcohol so one or two drinks won't kill me. I snapped it open with my hands and raised it up as a toast.

"Cheers!"

Everyone else yelled out their cheers and began to down theirs. I took a small sip and it wasn't the best-tasting thing but it was better than nothing. After all, I was only going to have one beer for the night to help me relax.

How bad can it be?

A few hours later . . .

"Oh yeah! This is awesome!"

I was completely out of my mind. I was planning to only drink one or two beers but then Coyle bragged about how he can hold his liquor better than me. I didn't like it at all and I wanted to prove him wrong so we decided to do a binge drinking competition. One minute, we drank two or three, and then the next thing I knew, both of us consumed more that sixteen beers but I lost could after that. I just knew I had more than him.

Everything around me was unfocused and slow like time had stopped or like an out of body experience. I couldn't tell which one and I didn't care. All I could make out was Coyle, Baxley, Nebraska, and Nettles dancing around the fire like they were Indians but I didn't care. I joined them in our little show, prancing around without a care in the world. I laughed so hard throughout the night that my throat began to burn a little but I hardly noticed. After we were done, most of the guys collapsed when they tried to raise Nettles up like what cheerleaders do but ended badly. I tried to stroll of a bit but my balance was out of whack. I had to look where my feet were stepping so I didn't trip on myself but it didn't work and I fell down on my butt, laughing hysterically.

This is so much fucking fun!

I thought that nothing could stop me until a huge figure stood over me. I used all my effort to turn on my back and look up. Then I saw McKenna's ugly mug of a face and he definitely looked pissed off but I just gave him a smirk.

"Hello, Cap!"

"What in fucking hell have you guys been doing? I said that you can have fun. Not get drunk like this!"

"So what, man? I'm having fun. Lots of fun!"

I struggled to get back up. I couldn't exactly feel where my hand was going so I had to look at it a bit to see if it was working. I can move it. I can sort of feel it so it must be working. Once I got the hang of it, I lifted my body back on my feet but the swaying kept it hard for me to stay in place. That is when I noticed Rory and Brackett behind McKenna with almost the same identical expression as McKenna without the 'pissed off' part. I just smiled and waved back to them. Rory did the same but Brackett looked confused and disturbed.

"So . . . what's up, dudes?"

"Dudes? Anya . . . How many beers did you have?" McKenna questions.

"One too many apparently. Lost count at about sixteen or so."

"What!? Are you insane? What about the other guys?"

All I gave him was a smirk and I began to walk off into the bushes and trees, not having a care in the world.

"And where the hell are you going now?"

"To get some air! I need something to breathe if you get my drift!"

I had to yell out loud for him to hear me and then I laughed in the air. I wobbled out of their sight and made my clumsy way through the bushes. I did get some scratches from dead branches but it only burned for a second. It was then that I found a nice spot at a base of a tree and sat down in a soft part of its roots. I slammed my head on the trunk but I was fine. It helped to get rid of a headache that was coming on. I looked up into the sky to see the beautiful, full moon shining down on me. I liked it. It was comforting as I shut my eyes for some time.

But then, the smell of sweet rain rushed into my nose and I relished in it, taking a huge whiff of it. I opened my eyes and saw Lar'ja looming over me with his mask off and not looking too pleased.

"Why are you here by yourself?"

I dropped my head to the side and chuckled at him. The effects of the alcohol were still strong in me and I just didn't care.

"Why do you ask? You took off without telling me anything?"

"That's because I had the stuff to do. But when I got back, everyone told me that you got drunk and took off in the forest. That's is pauking (fucking) stupid of you!"

He started to roar at me and I just lifted my eyebrow in confusion. Why does he care?

"I'm fine. I didn't go that far. Plus, I'm only here to catch some air. It got a little stuffy at camp but boy . . . was it fun. And you missed it!"

That only made him angrier. He began to growl at me but I just chuckled again as a response. When he noticed that it wasn't doing much, he reached out to grab my forearm and began to tug.

"What the fuck Lar'ja? I can get up myself."

"No, you can't. You don't even have the strength to walk on your own. I'm taking you back to camp."

I pouted at him but I swiped his hand away from me. What a party pooper . . . I used the trunk as support as I pushed on it to get me back into standing position. Lar'ja kept a watchful eye on me as I took a minute to get whatever balance I had left. I was able to stop swaying after some time.

"See. I can do it myself."

But it wasn't. As soon as I took a step forward, my foot landed wrong and the motion of my body forced me to fall forward and I wasn't fast enough to catch myself. However, I felt Lar'ja's arms wrap around me, catching me in an embrace so I didn't fall to the ground. I gripped him by the arms and moved my head up to meet his gaze. He looked rather surprised but I chuckled again.

"You should see your face."

He huffed in annoyance but never took his eyes off of me. "You are an impossible creature."

"And you're so unusually different but that is what I love about you."

We both froze after that. I thought that I was too far gone to understand but that little piece of my mind that I still had caught that fast. Did I say what I thought I just said?

Everything stood still. Even Lar'ja was unusually quiet but his eyes. Those eyes of his had some effect on me that I couldn't pinpoint and I said something that, for some reason, I couldn't deny. Did I want to deny it? I mean . . . we are different but there's something inside of me that's telling me otherwise. Do I really mean that?

All of those questions were floating everywhere inside my mind but I didn't have a chance to address them myself. Lar'ja's eyes began to glow brightly like they were stars in the night sky. His breath began to hitch and his arms began to tighten even more around me. I had no idea if it was the alcohol that was causing it or something else but my breathing also began to do the same thing as Lar'ja's. My heart beat faster and my fingers began to tingle like my nerves were on fire. In an act of bravery or curiosity, which I had no clue, I reached out to cup his face in my hands without breaking eye contact. I caress each of his mandibles slowly and they strangely remind me of when I touched marble on a table. Cool and smooth. Then my fingers made their way to the brows of his eyes, causing him to purr loudly.

He kept looking at me with wonder as I reached for his dreadlocks, holding one in my hand and moving back and forth and that just made him purr even louder. I stopped moving and looked back at him. I let a smile creep up to my face.

"You know . . . you're very handsome when you're like this."

And then, everything just snapped.

Fast as lighting, Lar'ja picked me up by the waist and pushed me back into the tree trunk. I gasped but it wasn't out of pain or shock. Somewhere deep inside me, I wanted this. I wanted to feel him next to me and here he was. I tried to blame this on the alcohol that I had consumed but it wasn't entirely true. Fuck this . . .

With a sharp pull, I brought his face to mine and I gave the most awkward kiss that I've ever done. Wait. This is my first one actually. My lips pressed into his inner mouth although there were not much of lips to latch on. However, it didn't matter since he took his hand and pressed it to the back of my head, pushing my face closer to his. I closed my eyes tightly and began to kiss every single part of his mouth. He growled and moved one of his hands up my back, sending a tingling feeling through my spine. I let out a moan and wrapped my legs around his waist as he caressed my back, bringing them as high as they can on his body.

Instinctually, I grabbed a fistful of his dreadlocks and the sound he made was one I would never forget. It was a mix between a growl and a moan and it reverberated through his mouth and into mine. He moves his face away from mine but just as I was about to complain, he moves his mouth down to my shoulder, rubbing his front mandibles down the back of my shoulder while the other ones gently moved across my chest and over my collar bone. He was doing the same thing as last time but I didn't want him to stop. I wanted more. My body was screaming for his attention. Then his tongue comes out and I felt it glide across my skin and I moaned again. And then, he stops his ministrations and without pause, he bites down on my shoulder.

I gasped and moaned so loud that I thought everyone could hear me as I wrapped my hands around his shoulders for support. It was a sharp pain at first but when he lets go and licks the blood that I could feel trickling down my skin, it subsided and turned into something of pleasure.

The burning between my legs came back again. The last time I had this, I didn't know what to make of it and but also, it was amazing and I was hungry for more. Lar'ja's ministrations didn't stop and he relentlessly caressed my body to the point that I was beginning to feel numb with the exception of my heart's pounding rhythm. This is breathtaking . . .

But then, something creeps up inside me and I froze in his arms, opening my eyes to the night sky above us. He must have known something was off as he lifted his face to mine with a concerned expression.

"Anya . . . Are you alright?"

I slowly looked around him before I locked eyes with him and I knew something was coming but it was too late to stop it.

"Goodnight."

As I was out like a light before anything else could happen. The last thing I recalled was the sound of Lar'ja calling my name.

Hi Readers!

Sorry for the teasing but I couldn't help it. We got some action between Lar'ja and Anya and it was heating up in here. At least, she sort of admits to loving him but will he feel the same as well?

I wanted to give the Loonies some action in the story since I felt that they weren't getting as much action and love from me and I'm sorry about that :(

But all that will change when they are on the road to finding Lar'ja's secret weapon but there will be danger up ahead so let's hope that they can handle it or else more than their lives will be in danger.

Find out when Chapter 22 comes along next week and don't miss out on my new story The Ripple of a Stone (Part 2), which will be dedicated to continuing the story from The Ripple of a Stone by Yeyinde.

Hope you all enjoy and have fun reading! :)))