Between The Crystals

Ch 19 Not a Cat

The light brown Saursune slowly rose to all fours—the shorter horns marked her as a female—as I continued backing up. The unarmed female paced forward leisurely, pausing to sniff the squirrel, acorns, and the spot the cat had sat. She batted the knife to the side and lifted her head as the cat abandoned her hiding spot and raced deeper into the forest.

Her gaze turned back to me as she ambled closer. My eyes strayed to the crystal I was being herded away from. Soon, it would be too far away for me to see. I angled my retreat to the side, hoping to loop around if I survived that long, but the Saursune made sure to keep herself between me and the crystal.

My legs shook with the need to run, but there was nowhere to run to. The Saursune was between me and safety, my companions weren't nearby, and there was no other crystal in the area. I stumbled over another root.

The sunlight danced across the spires, scattering beautiful refractions across the grass and nearby plants. When the crystal was almost out of sight, I stopped retreating. If I was going to die, I couldn't bear to be too far away to see it.

My arms and legs trembled as the Saursune came closer. Eight paces away. Five. Far too close.

Part of my mind absently noted she wasn't growling or baring her teeth, but it did nothing to slow my racing heart. The sheer size of these aliens once again took my breath away and reminded me exactly where I sat on the food chain. Even on all fours, her back was higher than my elbow. Her neck was long enough to put her head level with mine.

Despite my resolution to stare at the crystal during my final moments, I squeezed my eyes closed and held my arms tight against my sides. Dull crunches of leaves moved to my left and went behind me, which only made my heart pound harder. As she circled around me, her footsteps came up on my right.

A faint brush against my left ankle almost made me jump out of my skin. My eyes flew open. The Saursune had stopped on my right, gazing at the crystal as if she had forgotten about me. A hasty glance down confirmed the tip of her tail was resting against my ankle. Even the smallest attempt to edge away would be noticed.

I remained frozen to the spot, completely out of ideas as the Saursune stood beside me, almost as if waiting for me to flee to the crystal. The tail resting against my ankle was noticeably warm and impossible to forget. A faint hum hung in the air, almost akin to a very deep cat purr. My heart refused to slow down, and my rapid, shallow breathing threatened to make me hyperventilate.

When the Saursune shook herself and circled in front of me, my racing heart nearly stopped. Her tail brushed against the back of my legs, making sure she'd know the instant I tried bolting for safety, yet she never even glanced my way.

I was terrified. And confused. Very, very confused. She hadn't harmed me, nor was she chasing me back to the crystal. But neither did she seem inclined to let me leave. Part of my mind desperately wished my companions would return and distract her, but the other part knew they'd just be walking into danger.

In a terrifying game of cat and mouse, she circled behind me again, still within arm's reach. My mind finally began working around my fear even though my muscles vibrated from the adrenaline and the need to get away. Unfortunately, no plans came to mind. Not with a Saursune circling me this far from the crystal.

When the light brown lizard came up on my left, she rubbed her cheek along my arm, acting far more like a cat than an intelligent alien. I held my breath in case I somehow triggered an attack. As her head disappeared behind me again, my lungs burned and forced me to take a deep breath.

She had edged closer during her circling, and her shoulder bumped against my elbow as she came up beside me again. I was a bit light-headed from holding my breath, and rather than hold rigid and possibly have it mistaken as aggression on my part, I tried to force my muscles to relax.